HAMPTON, Va. (WAVY) — The Coast Guard has actively suspended its search for a missing man who jumped overboard from a boat Thursday afternoon about a mile and a half from Grandview Beach in Hampton.
Zach Widgeon, a spokesperson for the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC), confirmed on Friday the man is 58-year-old Keith Thomas Henley of Providence Forge, Virginia, which is in New Kent County. His family has been notified.
VMRC will continue to search and will be assisted by the Department of Wildlife Resources.
Widgeon said Henley was on a boat with one other person, when Henley went in the water to retrieve a fishing net. Henley was not wearing a lifejacket. He started drifting, and the other boater tried to throw a line to him, but the current was too strong.
“[The] net went overboard. He (Henley) went to get it. He had a friend on the boat with him. His friend was inexperienced. He didn’t know how to operate the boat; couldn’t even turn it on to go get him. Had basically to just watch as he disappeared. The friend called 911. Hampton Fire and Rescue sent their marine unit out. One of the captains of the vessels for Hampton Fire and Rescue found the boat and drove the boat in… to Wallace’s marina,” Widgeon explained.
According to Hampton Battalion Chief Anthony Chittum, they received a call around 12:30 p.m. Thursday about the man who went into the water.
The Hampton Division of Fire and Rescue, along with Norfolk Fire-Rescue and the Coast Guard initially responded to start searching for the man. The search expanded into the Chesapeake Bay and the Coast Guard was out through the night. Regional assets resumed their search Friday morning.
Chittum said there were three helicopters, one from the U.S. Coast Guard and two from the U.S. Navy, that aided in their search efforts.
The Coast Guard roughly covered 1,800 nautical miles between its water and airborne assets, before suspending its search at 1:40 p.m. Friday.
“At this time, the Coast Guard has saturated that area with our other government agency partners,” Lt. Mike Long with the U.S. Coast Guard told WAVY Friday.
Before heading out on the water, Lt. Long said boaters should always leave with a float plan. “A plan of where you are leaving out of, where you are going to, and where you will be returning. Leave it with a loved one. If you’re going out there, be sure your radio is working, you have enough floatation devices, and if you have a cell phone, make sure you have a cell phone charger that works with your vessel or a portable battery to keep your cell phone battery on.”
He said there is another helpful tool in the palm of your hands. Most smart phones come equipped with a compass app. “If you’re in distress and you need to call the United States Coast Guard or 911, that compass app will actually give you a latitude and longitude position that you can give that will pinpoint your position precisely for search and rescue efforts.”