###

Press release from the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office:

On January 31, 2026, at approximately 1600 hours, the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office received a report regarding a male subject, identified as Maximo Macanas (DOB: 04/26/1988), who was struck by a sneaker wave while eel fishing at the mouth of the Klamath River near 4351 Klamath Beach Road. Maximo was fishing with a friend and his younger children at the time. He was last seen wearing a Carhart jacket and green waders.

• Yurok Tribal Police Department Officers Flores and Luna-Orozco were the first to arrive on the scene. - The United States Coast Guard (USCG) Humboldt Bay Station was notified and responded with search helicopters and a boat.
• Del Norte County Search and Rescue (SAR) and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife were also dispatched.
• Yurok Tribal Police deploying a boat on the river side of the mouth and Fish and Wildlife deploying on the ocean side.
• Due to limited visibility at nightfall, Incident Command was demobilized and resumed on February 1, 2026, at 0830 hours.
• This multi-agency response included Gasquet Fire, Del Norte SAR, Fish and Wildlife, and Yurok Tribal PD.
• Search teams utilized boats in the river and conducted ground searches along the Klamath River spit, the Requa side, and Klamath Beach.
• At approximately 1500 hours on February 1st, no clues were located.
• Although active efforts have concluded, our Search and Rescue team intends to search the coastline for Maximo once a week moving forward.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to call in the Del Norte County Sheriff’s office at (707) 464-4191 or the Yurok Tribal Police at 1-855-55YUROK (1-855-559 8765) ext. 9060