Updated at 3:41 p.m. to reflect it was a body that was reported by a boater that sparked the search.
Updated at 11:30 a.m. with new information, including the fact that it's not clear if a distressed person in the water or a body seen in the water was the report officials responded to.
Investigations began Thursday after a dead body was found in the ocean near Hermosa Beach, according to county officials.
A "person in the water" near the Manhattan Beach Pier was reported to local authorities around 2:23 p.m., inspector Quvondo Johnson of the Los Angeles County Fire Department told Patch. Batallion Chief Jon O'Brien confirmed that a boater saw the body in the ocean and reported it.
Baywatch Redondo was dispatched with Baywatch Cabrillo and Baywatch Del Rey later joining in the search, said Los Angeles County Fire Department Inspector Brian Riley Friday. A U.S. Coast Guard Airship was also seen combing the coast during the search Thursday.
"We searched from that point on for a person in the water... we did end up finding a body," Johnson said.
The body was found around 5 p.m., pronounced dead at the scene and taken to neighboring Redondo Beach for further investigation, Johnson said.
Family members of the deceased must first be notified before the dead man's name can be publicly released, said Aura Sierra-Lidman, L.A. County deputy. Homicide detectives, who began their investigation after receiving a call around 7:40 p.m. Thursday, will attempt to identify the body and determine a cause of death.
Patch will report any new information that is released.
— City News Service contributed to this report.
