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Arkansas Man Dies Snorkeling Off Islamorada

ISLAMORADA – An Arkansas father who accompanied his son on a trip to the Keys died while snorkeling off Islamorada.

James Faulkner, 55, and his 16-year-old son were traveling with a Boy Scout group visiting the Islamorada Boy Scout Sea Base.

The father and son pair went out snorkeling with a group from the Sea Base Monday. The group was on board two sailboats, and stopped at Hens and Chickens reef offshore of Plantation Key to snorkel shortly after 1 p.m. The son noticed his father was floating unresponsive on the surface. He yelled for help and the occupants of a nearby private vessel went to his assistance and pulled Faulkner from the water.

The U.S. Coast Guard was notified. Faulkner was taken to Mariner's Hospital where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy will be done to determine the cause of his death.

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