A barnacle-covered cross that washed up on the shore by a Fort Lauderdale hotel recently had many wondering if it was a sign from God, WSVN reported.
But a woman has come forward saying she thinks she knows where the cross came from.
Robin Stowe said it was a memorial that was put up in memory of her brother Capt. Richard Baran, The Miami Herald reported.
Baran disappeared on a solo hunting trip in the Hatteras Inlet in January 2016.
The Coast Guard searched for him, but ended the search after 33 miles and eight hours.
Stowe said that friends of her brother went to the inlet and erected the cross in memory of Baran, the Herald reported.
The cross was put up near where Baran’s boat and hunting gear were found on Dredge Island.
She believes Hurricane Nate sent the cross into the sea, where it had been floating since then.
The man who created it, Capt. Aaron Aaron (that is his name, according to the Herald) said he recognized the technique he used to construct the memorial, according to the Herald.
Aaron said he and Baran’s friends signed the cross using Sharpies, but the well wishes were probably lost due to the barnacles and water.
The owner of the hotel where the cross washed ashore, Frank Talerico, told the newspaper many people have said the cross is theirs, and said that, if anyone has proof that it belongs to them, he'll return it. Otherwise, Talerico said, he's keeping it.
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