Fisherman Jeffrey Kale still missing after his boat was found drifting off NC coast: Coast Guard
An “expert fisherman” has been missing off the North Carolina coast for nearly one week – and authorities fear the worst after his boat was discovered drifting without any sign of its owner.
Jeffrey Kale, 47, was last seen around 4 p.m. on Saturday, when he left the Southport Wildlife Boat Ramp, the US Coast Guard explained.
A video posted on Kale’s Facebook page at 3:50 p.m. showed him leaving the dock area by himself.
A second round of searches was called off around 8 p.m. Wednesday night, the officials announced.
Authorities had reinvigorated the rescue effort after Kale’s 32-foot Cape Hope center console boat was found 83 miles off the coast of Wrightsville Beach on Tuesday, the Coast Guard said in a press release.
There was fishing gear on the boat, but no sign of Kale.
“We offer our sincere condolences to the Kale family during this difficult time,” said Cmdr. Corrie Sergent, Sector North Carolina deputy commander.
“Saving lives at sea drives our rescue crews to train and operate every single day with the hope to bring people home safely, which is why making the decision to suspend a search is truly one of the hardest things for our personnel to make and we do not take it lightly,” he added.
“We are grateful to the various Navy assets, commercial assistance, and multiple good Samaritans who have also assisted in the search.”
Over the last several days, rescue crews in the air and the sea logged about 100 combined man hours looking for Kale, the Coast Guard noted.
The effort was also aided by “multiple good Samaritan boaters,” the release stated.
Just a few days before he vanished, Kale, of Clover, SC, shared a photo of the boat parked on a trailer, writing that he was set to take a fishing trip with his son on Sunday to ring in spring break.
A few weeks earlier, Kale – who was described as an “expert fisherman” by police – had also posted a complaint about spring break not lining up with ideal fishing weather.
“The wind always blows the first 2 weeks of April,” he noted in the post.
