Search For Missing Boater Off Salisbury Beach Suspended
SALISBURY (CBS) – The search for a missing boater off Salisbury Beach was suspended Wednesday morning.
Authorities were called to the beach around 5:40 p.m. Tuesday after two men were thrown into the water after their boat capsized in rough seas. Neither was wearing a life jacket, according to the Coast Guard.
One of the men was rescued from a nearby jetty and brought to the hospital. He was not seriously hurt.
They found the second man face down and unconscious in the surf zone, but the Coast Guard's 47-foot motor lifeboat crew was hit by a big wave.
"While attempting to rescue him from the churn, the boat and crew were struck by an 8 to 10 foot breaking wave. When they recovered from the impact, the man was nowhere in sight," the Coast Guard said in a statement.
The search resumed at sunrise Wednesday, but wound down after about two hours. Authorities say the conditions continue to be difficult and they have found nothing.
"Approximately 67 miles of track line was searched in a 14 square mile area over 17 hours," the Coast Guard said Wedenesday. "The search will remain suspended pending the development of new information."
The men's names have not been made public.
No other information is available at this point in the investigation.