VERO BEACH — A local man faces charges after fabricating a distress call that triggered a large-scale emergency response near Blue Cypress Lake on Monday.
The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office (IRCSO) received a 911 call from a boater claiming he had flipped his airboat, was injured, and had a missing passenger.
The report prompted a swift and extensive rescue operation involving IRCSO Deputies, Fire Rescue, the IRCSO Marine Unit, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), and a United States Coast Guard Blackhawk helicopter dispatched from Florida’s West Coast.
Upon locating the boater, identified as Dereck Howard of Vero Beach, authorities discovered no crash, no injuries, and no missing passenger. Instead, investigators found that Howard had run out of gas and invented the story to expedite assistance.
Howard now faces charges for misuse of 911 and filing a false report to law enforcement.
The IRCSO said such actions strain emergency resources and can delay responses to genuine emergencies. Authorities urge the public to report incidents responsibly to ensure services remain available for those in real need.
