Kawika David Benjamin Chetron, also known by his birth name David, vanished after a solo dive trip from Eureka’s public dock on March 16, 2007. A 32-year-old underwater photographer and software engineer with degrees from Harvard and Stanford, he was an experienced diver and a strong swimmer who operated a 17-foot Boston Whaler Montauk named Rapture.

The next day the Coast Guard found Rapture anchored and partially submerged in about 100 feet of water near Blunts Reef, roughly 24 miles down the coast and five miles offshore near Cape Mendocino. His camera was aboard but his diving gear was missing and there was no sign of him. Water temperature was about 55 degrees and seas were reported calm; Blunts Reef is noted for strong, ripping currents and often rough conditions.

Search teams expanded operations to 40 miles offshore, using aircraft, helicopters and boats, but after two days the search was called off and he was presumed to have drowned in a diving accident. The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department is investigating.

If anyone knew Kawika David Benjamin Chetron, his routines, dive plans, or travel along that stretch of coast, please share what you remember.