Helicopter search for a missing boater in Long Reach, N.B. has been suspended, according to the Halifax Joint Rescue Coordination Centre.
In a Friday morning release, New Brunswick RCMP said members in Grand Bay-Westfield, along with search and rescue teams, are looking for 70-year-old Wayne MacKenney from Quispamsis.
Police said they received a report around 6:30 p.m. on Thursday about a man falling overboard from a boat on the Saint John River.
Just after 2 p.m. on Friday, the Halifax JRCC tweeted that the search for MacKenney has been suspended.
In another tweet, the organization said the case will be turned over to the New Brunswick RCMP as a missing persons at sea case.
MacKenney “had been on the boat with friends when he fell overboard,” the morning release said. “Attempts were made to bring the man back on the boat but were unsuccessful.”
It said MacKenney is described as around 5’8 and weighing about 250 pounds. He was last seen wearing a dark green shirt, jeans and prescription glasses.
“Several services are conducting searches of the area,” the release said.
“These include the Long Reach, Peninsula and Hampton Fire departments, the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre helicopter, the RCMP Underwater Recovery Team, the Coast Guard, the Emergency Measures Organization Unmanned Aerial Vehicle and Ambulance New Brunswick.”
Anyone with information about MacKenney, or who may have been boating in the area and has information about the incident, is asked to contact the Grand Bay-Westfield RCMP Detachment at 506-757-1020.
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