Surfer found dead in ocean is identified

A man found floating in the water off 14th Street in Newport Beach has been identified as 38-year-old Gregory Gladstone of Newport Beach.

According to the Orange County Sheriff-Coroner, surfers found Gladstone’s surfboard floating in the water near 14th Street and West Oceanfront about 10:15 a.m. Saturday. The surfers alerted lifeguards, who along with the Orange County Sheriff Harbor Patrol searched the area and found Gladstone, unresponsive, about 11 a.m.

The surf that morning was about 6 to 10 feet high and choppy from a week full of storms and high tides, officials said.

Authorities have not determined a cause of death.

— Joseph Serna