Dean Naujoks is no stranger to river disasters. But he’s never seen one like this.

Naujoks has been Potomac Riverkeeper in Washington, DC, for the past 10 years. The Waterkeeper Alliance is a non-profit conservation organization that educates and advocates for the health of river systems.

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From 2001 to 2014, Naujoks was North Carolina Riverkeeper for the Neuse and the Yadkin, where he responded to the massive Duke Energy coal ash spill in the Dan River in 2013.

In the wake of Wednesday night's plane crash, Naujoks got a call to help. He knows the Potomac better than just about anyone else, including coves and areas of shallow water where most boaters can't go.

With permission from the FBI and Alexandria police, he went out on the river Thursday to search for debris to bring back to investigators.

"It was just the saddest day I've ever been on the river," Naujoks told WRAL News. "My heart goes out to all the families of the victims."

Naujoks headed for a cove a couple miles downstream where he figured the tide and current might have carried debris.

On social media, he posted videos of what he was fishing out of the water — a window panel, a seat, insulation, a manual from the plane, a bag of sugar packets. Everything was covered in a sheen of oil and jet fuel. The fumes were strong enough to burn his face.

"I found a sweater belonging to somebody, you know, that was probably out of a suitcase. I found part of a sleeve of a shirt, and I was just wondering how that one sleeve got there, you know," Naujoks said.

He brought back all the debris and turned it over to crash investigators.

"It was eerie," he told WRAL. "Quite frankly, you're terrified that you might come across a body part or something like that. I was praying that that was not going to be the case, and thankfully it wasn't."

Naujoks said he grateful to be of whatever help he could. But it was a heartbreaking day.

"I hope everybody in North Carolina, where I lived for 30 years, is praying for these families and, you know, and just supporting how they can," he said.