Coast Guard suspends search for missing NC boaters

George Hamilton Andrews, of Raleigh, and William Watkins "Bill" Merriman IV, of Wilmington, were last seen leaving Atlantic Beach on Sunday for a fishing trip aboard the 35-foot recreational boat "Strike Zone."

The Coast Guard received a report around 8 a.m. Tuesday that the boat was found overturned near Beaufort Inlet. A diver determined that no one was aboard the vessel, but all of the lights and gears were still energized.

The Coast Guard said it searched nearly 8,600 square miles from Ocracoke Inlet to Bogue Inlet and the surrounding areas for Andrews and Merriman, using a 154-foot cutter, a 47-foot motorized life boat, and a C-130 Hercules aircraft. The National Park Service and the Carteret County Sheriff's Department also searched along the shoreline.

"After the utmost consideration and careful review of all factors involved in this search and rescue case, the Coast Guard has made the difficult decision to suspend its active search efforts," Captain Matt Baer, sector commander for Coast Guard Sector North Carolina, said in a statement. "The decision to suspend a search is never easy, and our sincere thoughts go out to the families and friends of Mr. Andrews and Mr. Merriman during this incredibly trying time."

"The Coast Guard diligently searched with our pilots, boat forces, cutter crews and numerous partner agencies in the water, in the air and on land," said Cmdr. Corrie Sergent, a search and rescue mission coordinator. "We saturated the vast search area but, unfortunately, were unable to locate the two missing men."