SEBASTIAN INLET — A man whose body was pulled from the Atlantic Ocean four miles east of the Sebastian Inlet State Park has been identified as Pieter Kok, 82, of Indian River County.
"Basically, what we think happened is he went out on his daily boat thing on Thursday and what we're calling it is an overboard -- falling overboard," said Lenny Salberg, spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
"But we don't know what caused it, if it was a heart attack. He's at the medical examiner's office and I think they're waiting for the autopsy to come back,'' Salberg said Friday.
"He was 82 years old, so that was that a pretty good that he could go out and sail at that age,'' he said. "You have to give him credit for going out at that age.''
Kok's body was found about four miles offshore, Salberg said. His identificaton was released after his family was notified.
On Thursday morning, Kok's sailboat grounded on the shoreline about 1,000 feet north of the inlet in Brevard County, Salberg said.
Staff at a local marina told authorities that Kok routinely launched his 25-foot sailboat on Thursdays, Salberg said
A 911 call was made about 11 a.m. when a lifeguard at the Sebastian Inlet spotted the sailboat. The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office launched a helicopter for the search and spotted Kok floating in the ocean, Salberg said. The U.S. Coast sent a boat to the location and brought the body to shore, he said.
