Families await news of missing workers on capsized lift boat

PORT FOURCHON, La. — Worried family members were waiting Friday to hear the fate of 11 workers still missing after a lift boat capsized earlier this week off Louisiana while the Coast Guard confirmed it pulled a second body from the Gulf of Mexico's waters.

Rescuers in the air and the sea have been searching for the 19 workers who were aboard the vessel, which is designed to support offshore oil rigs, when it overturned Tuesday in rough weather about 8 miles (13 kilometers) south of the Louisiana coast.

“Right now, we’re hoping for a miracle,” said Steven Walcott, brother of missing worker Gregory Walcott.

Six people were rescued Tuesday shortly after the vessel capsized, and one other body was recovered from the water Wednesday. The second body was found in the water near the partially submerged Seacor Power lift boat Thursday night, according to a Coast Guard news release. The boat has three legs designed to extend to the sea floor and raise the ship so it can serve as a platform for nearby rigs.

The hope is that those still missing have found air pockets to survive inside the ship. But authorities haven't reported any contact with anyone inside the ship since Tuesday. On Thursday, searchers knocked on the ship’s hull without response.

Some relatives have expressed frustration about why the boat was out at sea in such rough weather. Walcott, who has also worked on lift boats, said the boats are not designed for travel in rough weather.