A search operation is ongoing in New York Harbor for a 52-year-old man who went missing after a boat capsized on Sunday, leading to the deaths of three people and injuries to two others. The U.S. Coast Guard is leading the search efforts, deploying multiple aircraft and watercraft, including a helicopter from the Coast Guard Air Station Atlantic City and the Coast Guard cutter William Chadwick.
The missing man has been identified as Vernon Glasford of the Bronx, New York. Authorities reported that Glasford was last seen wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans, and black boots.
According to the Coast Guard, Glasford and five others were on a 30-foot Grady White boat that began taking on water and eventually sank while they were returning from a fishing trip. The boat had departed from Howard Beach early Sunday morning. Glasford was fishing with friends and colleagues, a regular activity for the group, according to his cousin, David Glasford. He described his cousin as a hardworking father of three and expressed shock over the incident.
The boat capsized in Ambrose Channel, about five miles southeast of Breezy Point, at the tip of Queens’ Rockaway Peninsula. Authorities were alerted just after noon when 911 operators in New York City received reports of the sinking vessel. The Coast Guard, along with the New York Police Department’s Aviation Unit, the New York Fire Department, the New Jersey State Police, and the Sandy Hook Pilots Association, launched a search-and-rescue operation.
Rescuers managed to recover five individuals from the water, four of whom were unresponsive. Two were airlifted to Staten Island University Hospital, while three were transported to Coast Guard Station Sandy Hook, where emergency medical personnel performed life-saving efforts, including CPR. Despite these efforts, three of the victims were pronounced dead.
Authorities have not yet determined what caused the boat to sink, and the search for Glasford remains ongoing. The Coast Guard continues to urge boaters to follow safety precautions while out on the water and report any information that may assist in locating the missing man.
