Search for missing swimmer suspended for second day at Vermilion beach

VERMILION — Officials again called off the search for the body of a missing Elyria man from Showse Park in Vermilion on Thursday evening, leaving the 33-year-old's family frustrated. Identified by family and friends as Brandon Spurlock, he was last seen in the water 25 to 30 yards offshore at the park about 4 p.m. Wednesday. His niece, Mya Galindo, 16, of Elyria, had been at the beach with him Wednesday and said he'd been swimming toward her on shore after the inflatable raft he and another girl were on had gone out too far. Mya's mother, Melissa Galindo, said Spurlock didn't look like he was struggling at first when he was swimming toward Mya, but then he went under and she swam out to him. By the time she got to him, he'd gone under a second time and was already limp, Galindo said, and while Mya fought to try to keep them both above the water, his weight was pulling her under and she had to let go. "I went under twice and then I was struggling," Mya said, "I didn't feel any strong current, but I don't know because I couldn't touch the ground so I don't know what was under me." She said it could have been heat stroke that caused her uncle to go under; they'd been out in the sun for several hours at that point. Mya said there was a couple swimming nearby who helped her get back to where her feet could touch the lake bed, and once she got back on land she grabbed the car keys and got her phone out of the car and called her mom. Search teams from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources posts in Cleveland and Sandusky came to Showse Park on Thursday afternoon with side sonar to try to locate Spurlock's body, but the typography of the lake bottom made it hard to get a clear picture, Vermilion Police Capt. Jim Graham said. ODNR may try again Friday morning, but it will be weather dependent, he said. Spurlock's parents, Brenda and Paul Spurlock, were both frustrated, questioning why the Ohio Department of Natural Resources had to be called in, and why the search was suspended Thursday when it was still daylight. "I want to know why these (expletives) ain't got the resources that they need to do search and rescue," Paul Spurlock said. "They don't got dive teams at their Coast guards, they've got to bring them in out of town. … Apparently this isn't important like the other two kids they found — it didn't take them long to find them," Spurlock said, referring to two young men who drowned at Lakeview Park Beach May 31. "It seems like they just don't (care)." Brenda Spurlock added, "Why don't they have the resources?" His sister, Melissa Galindo agreed. "It's not like anybody's unrealistic, we know what they're looking for. We know that he's gone but we want him out of the water," she said. Several family and friends gathered at Showse Park discussed mounting a search of their own, which Graham strongly advised against due to water conditions. A friend to many Gathering in the shade, or standing out along the edge of the park before the small beach, friends and family watched as two ODNR boats passed meticulously through the water, sweeping the terrain to find their son, brother and friend. "If I hadn't been out here watching it with my own two eyes yesterday, I wouldn't have believed it," Galindo said. His older sisters, Roberta Heston, of Lorain, and Galindo, of Elyria, remembered him as a family man who loved his nieces and nephews, the Cincinnati Bengals and trips to Cedar Point. Despite towering over the two, and his mother, he was always the baby, they said. "I used to tease him about that, I said I don't care what you think, you're still the baby," Brenda Spurlock said. He loved fishing and swimming, known to vacation in Florida, North Carolina — really anywhere he could be by the water, Galindo said, noting he was the nicest person anyone could hope to meet and the "Karaoke King" at Eddie's Club in Elyria. He'd been known to bring his own karaoke machine to Boomers in Elyria too, they said. He'd worked for more than 16 years at Walmart, now working as a manager at the Medina store. He'd recently taken Mya to see the Kill The Noise tour in Cincinnati with Papa Roach, Hollywood Undead and Bad Wolves. He'd taken her to see Buckcherry for her first concert about six years ago, putting her up on his shoulders and getting her stageside to catch a drum stick from the drummer. "He was my buddy. I was his buddy," Mya said. For every concert he went to, he came back with 10 new friends, those gathered at Showse Park said — if you had a problem with Spurlock, it was on you. His best friend, Desirae Vonya, of Grafton, said he was the kindest soul she knew and would do anything to help anyone. She'd met him about six-and-a-half years ago when she posted on Facebook she needed help getting away from her ex-fiance and he drove three-and-a-half hours away to help her. She'd been his sidekick ever since, she said. "He had the most precious smile, the most (genuine) laugh, it was contagious," she said. He enjoyed being around people he loved, Sophia Cantrell, of Sheffield, said, noting he was never too busy to change the oil in their cars, help with work needed around the house, or sit with his friends through a bad night. He cared for everyone, no matter what, she said. Mayor Jim Forthofer warned swimmers to be careful in the Lake, including being aware of undertows common in the area, but said the beaches are swim-at-your-own-risk. He said given the heat, you can't blame people for wanting to swim, but cautioned that they know their swimming capabilities. The search will not impede the Festival of the Fish, set to start Friday in downtown Vermilion, he said. "I just need them to bring me my baby brother," Heston said, looking out at the lake. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.