The search for missing Glee actress Naya Rivera has shifted from a rescue to a recovery effort, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office confirmed in a press conference Thursday.
The 33-year-old star was reported missing after she rented a pontoon boat and went out on the Lake Piru reservoir with her four-year-old son Josey Dorsey around lunchtime Wednesday.
When the boat was overdue to return, lake staff went searching for it. They found Josey asleep on board the boat. Naya was nowhere in sight.
Authorities suspended the search for the actress around midnight – an action that angered her fans.
.@VENTURASHERIFF i have been apart of searches (water & land) that have taken place at night. One lasting 12+ hours. Don’t suspend the search for Naya Rivera. She has a child. A family who is worried about her safety. Don’t stop.
— Nicholas Liddle (@NLiddle16) July 9, 2020
“Multiple teams of professional search & rescue personnel are actively searching Lake Piru for clues to the location of Naya Rivera,” the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office tweeted on Thursday. “With over 80 people involved in the search right now, we are using helicopters, boats, ATV vehicles, and ground personnel to try and locate her.”
Captain Eric Buschow told reporters Josey was in good health and “The family is going through a very traumatic time right now.”
He said one adult life vest was found on the boat – an indication that Naya wasn’t wearing one when she went into the water.
In one of her last social media posts, Naya urged her fans to make the most of their lives, writing: “No matter the year, circumstance, or strifes everyday you’re alive is a blessing. make the most of today and every day you are given. tomorrow is not promised.”
no matter the year, circumstance, or strifes everyday you're alive is a blessing. make the most of today and every day you are given. tomorrow is not promised pic.twitter.com/O4t7wdqA4k
— Naya Rivera (@NayaRivera) July 2, 2020
The day before she went missing, she shared a photo of herself kissing her son. She captioned the image, “Just the two of us.”
Naya’s fans pointed out the words are the same as the title of a rap song by Eminem about a mother who drowns in a lake.
Naya Rivera's most recent instagram post is captioned "just the two of us", which is the name of an Eminem song about a mother drowning.
The lyrics are so eerie.
Hopefully just a coincidence and she's found. ?? #nayarivera #FindNayaRivera pic.twitter.com/GKVARBKYCk— boo (@sullysbitch) July 9, 2020
