A man found dead at Ocean Beach made a habit of night swimming in the Pacific, his friends say.

30-year-old Alex Peer was found face-down in the water near Great Highway and Judah Street at 7:26 a.m. last Thursday, fire department spokeswoman Mindy Talmadge said.

According to the Chron, Peer was an event planner at Dixie Restaurant, which closes at 10 PM.

“He liked to unwind and swim after work. He was a great swimmer and really loved to get out there,” Stephanie Wilson, a friend of Peer’s told the Chron.

After Peer didn’t show up for work Thursday, Wilson tells the Chron that she texted him. In response, she got a text saying “Hey, I found your friend’s phone on the beach next to his keys, with his clothes” from Peer’s phone.

U.S. Park police are investigating the death, National Park Service spokesman Howard Levitt said.

the author

Eve Batey is the editor and publisher of the San Francisco Appeal. She used to be the San Francisco Chronicle's Deputy Managing Editor for Online, and started at the Chronicle as their blogging and interactive editor. Before that, she was a co-founding writer and the lead editor of SFist. She's been in the city since 1997, presently living in the Outer Sunset with her husband, cat, and dog. You can reach Eve at eve@sfappeal.com.

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