Coast Guard suspends search for 4 missing off Alabama coast

DAUPHIN ISLAND, Ala. -- As torrential rain and heavy winds battered Alabama's coast Monday, the U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search for four people missing after a deadly weekend storm killed two people and played havoc with a yearly sailboat race in Mobile Bay.

The agency said the search -- in which divers were sent down to sunken boats -- would resume as soon as the weather allows.

Crews have been searching for four boaters still missing after the powerful storm capsized several sailboats, killing at least two mariners, in a Saturday regatta.

The weather was much worse Monday than during Sunday's search efforts, which included volunteers with boats, so the Coast Guard asked residents and visitors to walk the shore and look for signs of survivors or anything that washed up.

The Coast Guard said one person initially believed missing had been found safe at home after a check of people who had registered for the race.

One skipper said her crew had 15 minutes warning of the storm Saturday afternoon, but the wind hit so suddenly and with such force, her 34-foot racing cruiser nearly capsized.

Within seconds, said Susan Kangal, 52, "it went from probably 15 to 20 miles per hour to 73 miles per hour. It just shot off the charts. And that's when you couldn't see anything. Everything went white, (the) boat slammed to its side."

The Coast Guard said it would not release the names of the dead or missing until all the families are notified. The agency released a statement on behalf of the families thanking emergency response agencies and asking prayer for their loved ones.

The National Weather Service said heavy rains were possible through Monday night.