ON 6/16/23, AT APPROX 11:00AM, A DISTRESS CALL WAS HEARD BY SEA TOW THAT A VESSEL WAS SINKING IN THE CAROLINA BEACH INLET WITH 3 PEOPLE ON BOARD.  SEA TOW WAS NEARBY AND ABLE TO ASSIST THE BOATERS THAT WERE IN THE WATER.  

UPON INVESTIGATION, IT WAS FOUND THAT VESSEL 1 WAS HEADING EAST IN THE CAROLINA BEACH INLET TOWARDS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN IN A 16 FT JON BOAT.  AFTER GETTING FARTHER OUT INTO THE INLET, OPERATOR REALIZED THAT THE VESSEL HE WAS IN WAS FAR TOO SMALL FOR THE CONDITIONS OF THE WATER HE WAS IN.  OPERATOR TURNED TO THE LEFT IN AN ATTEMPT TO TURN THE VESSEL AROUND AND GO BACK TOWARDS THE ICW.  WHEN HE TURNED, A WAVE CAME OVER THE STARBOARD SIDE OF THE VESSEL CAUSING A LARGE AMOUNT OF WATER TO FILL THE VESSEL.  THE VESSEL TOOK SEVERAL MORE WAVES OVER THE STARBOARD SIDE AND THE MOTOR THEN QUIT.  THE VESSEL THEN SANK IN APPROXIMATELY 4 FEET OF WATER.

OPERATOR AND THE OTHER OCCUPANTS WERE UNINJURED AND SEA TOW WAS ABLE TO REMOVE THE VESSEL FROM THE CAROLINA BEACH INLET THE SAME DAY.

NO INJURIES WERE REPORTED, NO CHARGES FILED.

***PLEASE NOTE:  THIS REPORT WAS MANUALLY ENTERED INTO BARD DUE TO CONTNUED TRANSMISSION ISSUES BETWEEN REPORT BEAM AND BARD****

*****BARD, PLEASE DO NOT DELETE THIS REPORT****


******END OF REPORT******
CAROLINA BEACH INLET
CAROLINA BEACH                