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\"I wholeheartedly believe this is a bread crumb they [threw] overboard to say, 'We are here, come find us,'\" Stephanie McCluney said in her Facebook post on Monday night, which included a photo of the bag.

Coast Guard officials said the search, using boats and military aircraft, have covered more than 50,000 square miles of ocean since it began Friday night. Crews searched 13,000 square miles on Tuesday alone, Vlaun said.

McCluney and Walker were last seen on Friday launching a 22-foot fishing boat at Port Canaveral, which is near the Kennedy Space Center, U.S. Coast Guard officials said.

One of the main reasons McCluney and Walker were taking the fishing boat out for the day was to honor Brian McCluney's recently-departed father, Stephanie McCluney said.

\"PHOTO:
U.S. Coast Guard
PHOTO: The Coast Guard along with partner agencies are searching for two overdue boaters after they did not return from a fishing trip near Port Canaveral, Fla., Aug. 17, 2019.
>

\"[Brian] wanted to get those lines wet one more time. You know, one big final hurrah for his dad and it was just supposed to be one great day in his honor … he was excited to get out there on the water,\" said Stephanie McCluney.

When the men failed to return to shore by 8 p.m. on Friday, their family members reported them missing.

About 50 firefighters from the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department joined the Coast Guard in searching for the lost firefighters, combing the waters between Daytona Beach and Vilano in 11 boats over the weekend.

When asked on Tuesday how much longer the search will continue, Vlaun said, “ultimately, that’s a decision that will fall to me and I can only tell you that for today we’re continuing to search and we’re searching heavily based on what we learned today.\"

\"Each day we effectively have to take a look at what did we find the day before ... and do we still have a reasonable chance for success,\" Vlaun said. \"For today, that answer is yes.\"

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