Coast Guard calls off unsuccessful search for fisherman who was dragged underwater after catching a 'huge' tuna

• The US Coast Guard has suspended its search for a man pulled overboard while trying to catch a tuna.
• Mark Knittle, 63, went missing January 15 while fishing in Hawaii.
• The Coast Guard said it had searched 766 square nautical miles before calling off the search.

The US Coast Guard has called off the search for a 63-year-old man who went missing after trying to haul in a massive tuna off the coast of Hōnaunau, Hawaii.

Mark Knittle was reported missing on January 15 after a friend told police he was pulled into the ocean by the Yellowfin tuna, also known as Ahi, which can weigh up to 400 pounds. "The fish is huge," Knittle, who was reported as being 5 feet, 10 inches tall and 185 pounds, said before he went overboard, according to a police statement. His friend dived in after him but Knittle was nowhere to be found.

In a statement, the Coast Guard said it had halted its search-and-rescue effort.

"While it's never an easy decision, the active search for the missing fisherman off the coast of Hawaii was suspended pending any new information," Ryan Fisher, a spokesperson for the Coast Guard, told Insider.

The search was halted on Thursday at 4 p.m. local time, Fisher said, and there have been no updates in the case since then. Rescuers spent 89 hours searching for Knittle, he noted, covering some 766 square nautical miles.

Although such accidents are rare, experienced fishermen say the Yellowfin tuna, which typically ways around 130 pounds, is a famously difficult fish to catch. If one makes a mistake, "you could get pulled over and be along for the ride," Paul Appleblom, owner of Kauai Apex Charters, told Insider.

The Hawaii Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of its own investigation into Knittle's disappearance.

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