Oregon coast at Depoe Bay
photo by Oregon State Police
A 26-year-old Baylor School graduate is missing and presumed dead after he was struck by a wave off the coast of Oregon on Friday morning.
Kelly Bennett Smith, 26, is the son of Chattanooga physician Dr. Bill Moore Smith and Mrs. Smith.
The Statesman Journal of Salem, Ore., said Mr. Smith was visiting Depoe Bay with several friends after finishing a job at Corvallis. He and one of the friends had walked down to a rocky shore and climbed out on some rocks to get closer to take photos. They were walking back when they were struck by a "rogue wave."
It swept Mr. Smith into the ocean. The newspaper said he was seen for about seven minutes before disappearing. He was unable to get to shore due to the high waves.
The incident happened shortly before 11 a.m.
The Coast Guard had two boats and a helicopter at the scene on Saturday.
The Smith family is from Lookout Mountain. His address was given as Athens, Ga., as he had been studying at the University of Georgia.