Search underway for missing boater off Alligator Point

Search and rescue crews are trying to find a missing boater after a partially submerged cabin cruiser was found Sunday nearly 5 miles off the coast of Alligator Point.

Three people were on board the 49-foot vessel, called "Old School," on Sunday when it ran into unknown difficulties. Officers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, who discovered the boat, contacted the U.S. Coast Guard around 6 p.m. for help.

They found two of the three boaters, though it wasn't clear whether they were on board or in the water at the time. One was found unresponsive and the other was taken to a local hospital. It was not immediately clear where the unresponsive crew member was taken.

"We don't know the cause as to why the vessel was submerged," said Petty Officer Lexie Preston, a Coast Guard spokeswoman. "Currently our primary focus is search and rescue."

The Coast Guard deployed helicopters from New Orleans and Clearwater, along with two search boats from Panama City, to look for the missing boater.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Coast Guard at (251) 441-5976.

Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or follow @JeffBurlew on Twitter.