Four divers missing off Cape Fear, NC, coast as Coast Guard launches search effort

The United States Coast Guard is searching for four divers who are missing from a 'pleasure craft' about 50 miles south of Cape Fear in North Carolina.

The divers were realized as missing in communication between different Coast Guard sectors in both North and South Carolina. 

Coast Guard Sector Charleston first reported the four men diving off of a craft called 'Big Bill's' about 63 miles east of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, around noon Sunday.

They found that the men had not resurfaced and the two sectors launched a search and rescue effort.

The guard is using an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew; an HC-130 Hercules aircraft crew; an HC-130 aircraft crew; a 47-foot motor lifeboat crew; the Coast Guard Cutter Sailfish, an 87-foot patrol boat; and the Coast Guard Cutter Yellowfin.

The United States Coast Guard is searching for four divers who are missing from a 'pleasure craft' about 50 miles south of Cape Fear in North Carolina

The crews range from North and South Carolina to as far as Sandy Hook in New Jersey.

The current sea state is about 2-3 feet with 10-knot winds and crews will continue searching through the night, the Coast Guard said in a statement.

The Diver Alert Network reports that about 80-90 diving accident deaths occur per year in the United States and Canada.

Diving deaths are lower than those for driving cars and many other sports. 

Neophyte divers tend to be responsible for half of all diving fatalities. 

The names of the missing men have not been released. Officials have not said if the men were diving for anything specific.