ON APRIL 10, 2010 AT 5:30PM FOUR MEN WENT FISHING ON THE ROANOKE RIVER.  THE BOAT WAS IN GOOD WORKING CONDITION WHEN THEY STARTED OUT GOING DOWN RIVER FROM THE WILLIAMSTON ACCESS AREA.  BEFORE STARTED OUT OCCUPANT2 HAD MADE A COMMENT TO OCCUPANT1 SAYING "HEAR MAN...HERE'S A LIFE JACKET" AND TOSSED HIM A LIFE JACKET.  OCCUPANT1 IN RETURN BRUSHED OFF THE COMMENT AND DID NOT PUT THE LIFE JACKET ON INSTEAD PUT IT ASIDE.  OPERATOR HAD OPERATED THE BOAT A MILE DOWN RIVER BEFORE THEY DECIDED TO START FISHING.  THE BOAT WAS TIED TO A LOW HANGING BRANCH BECAUSE THE CURRENT WAS TOO STRONG FOR THE ANCHOR THEY HAD BROUGHT WITH THEM.  OCCUPANT2 AND OCCUPANT3 HAD BROUGHT SOME BEER ALONG WITH THEM IN A SMALL BLUE COOLER WITH NO MORE THAN A SIX PACK IN IT.  WHEN FISHING THE MEN HAD CAUGHT TWO WHITE PERCH AND A CATFISH.  WHEN IT STARTED TO GET DARK THEY MADE THE DECISION TO RETURN TO THE ACCESS AREA BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T HAVE NAVIGATION LIGHTS ON THE BOAT.  FIRST THE BOAT WAS UNTIED FROM THE TREE.  THEN THE BOAT WAS STARTED, BUT THEY HAD ENGINE PROBLEMS AND THE MOTOR WOULD NOT GO FORWARD.  OPERATOR THEN TRIED TO PUT THE BOAT INTO REVERSE AND IT DID WORK, BUT THE STEERING CABLE HAD A MALFUNCTION AND THE BOAT WOULD NOT STEER.  THAT IS WHEN OCCUPANT2 WENT TO THE BACK OF THE BOAT AND TRIED TURNING THE BOAT MOTOR BY HAND.  THE BOAT DID TURN AND STARTED MOVING UP RiVER WITH THE STERN GOING UP RIVER AGAINST THE CURRENT.   WHEN THIS WAS DONE THE STRONG CURRENT AGAINST THE STERN FORCED WATER OVER THE TOP AND SANK THE BOAT WITHIN TEN TO TWENTY SECONDS.  THE FOUR MEN IN THE BOAT WERE NO WEARING LIFE JACKETS AND DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO PUT THEM ON BEFORE THE BOAT SANK.  ALL FOUR MEN JUMPED FROM THE BOAT INTO THE WATER AND STARTED SWIMMING FOR SHORE.  operator, OCCUPANT2, AND OCCUPANT3S ALL MADE IT TO SHORE ABOUT TWENTY FEET APART FROM EACH OTHER.  OCCUPANT1 DID NOT KNOW HOW TO SWIM AND WITH THE STRONG CURRENT ON THE ROANOKE RIVER THAT DAY DID NOT MAKE IT TO SHORE.  THE THREE MEN ON SHORE TRIED CALLING FOR OCCUPANT1, BUT DID NOT GET A RESPONSE.  IT WAS COMPLETELY DARK AT THIS TIME WHEN THE THREE SURVIVORS STARTED WALKING UP RIVER ON THE BERTIE COUNTY SIDE TO GET HELP.  THEY WALKED FOR AN HOUR TO AN HOUR AND A HALF BEFORE THEY WERE PICKED UP BY ANOTHER BOAT GOING UP RIVER.  THIS BOAT ALSO BROKE DOWN ON ITS WAY TO THE ACCESS AREA, BUT THEY WERE ABLE TO CALL MARTIN COUNTY FOR HELP AT 10:15PM. ANOTHER HOUR WENT BY BEFORE A WILDLIFE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER PICKED UP THE SURVIVORS AND BROUGHT THEM TO THE ACCESS AREA FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT.  WHEN I WAS TALKING WITH THEM I COULD SMELL AN ODOR OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE ABOUT THEIR PERSON.  I THEN RETURNED TO SEARCH THE ROANOKE RIVER FOR ANY SIGN OF OCCUPANT1.  WHEN THE SEARCH WAS OVER FOR THE NIGHT I RETURNED TO THE BOAT OPERATORS HOUSe.  I WAS ABLE TO INTERVIEW HIM BETTER AND DETERMINED THAT HE HAD NOT BEEN DRINKING THAT NIGHT WHEN HE WAS OPERATING THE BOAT.  THE ONLY TWO THAT HAD BEEN DRINKING THAT NIGHT WAS OCCUPANT2 AND OCCUPANT3.
WILLIAMSTON                   