Long Search Ends For Man After South Jersey Boat Crash

A search has ended for a man who went missing after a boat with five people on board overturned Monday night. The five people aboard a 16-foot recreational vessel ended up in the Delaware River after the boat crashed into a wake.

The Coast Guard and State Police were searching for a man in his 20s who fell in the water near Hawk Island in Burlington County. The Coast Guard suspended the search at about 1 p.m. on Tuesday.

The Coast Guard began searching along with crews from the Philadelphia Marine Police, New Jersey State Police, Philadelphia Fire Marine, and Delanco Fire on Monday night.

“After working with our port partners and searching diligently through the night and this morning, we have made the difficult decision to suspend the search,” said Capt. Scott Anderson, commander, Sector Delaware Bay. “Our sincerest sympathies go out to the young man’s family and all of those affected by this tragedy.”

The Coast Guard received initial notification at about 5:40 p.m. Monday that several people in the water required assistance near Hawk Island, according to a Coast Guard press release.

The Coast Guard then issued an urgent marine information broadcast and launched a search from Station Philadelphia.

"We are working diligently along with our partners, doing everything we can to locate this man," Chief Petty Officer Kyle Gerkens, command duty officer for Sector Delaware Bay, said late Monday.

Four of the people were recovered by first responders by the time the Coast Guard arrived on scene. All four were placed in the care of EMS and taken to area hospitals, according to the release.

The Coast Guard is searching along with crews from the the Philadelphia Marine Police, New Jersey State Police, Philadelphia Fire Marine and other local agencies.

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