By Stephen Appezzato
RUMSON – The body of 37-year-old Diego Ferreira, who went fishing in a kayak, was recovered from the Navesink River near the Oceanic Bridge early Tuesday morning. Ferreira was from Long Branch.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) wrote in a statement to The Two River Times that the branch had received a report of “an overdue kayaker” in the vicinity of the bridge from county law enforcement on Monday and that the man was last heard from around 9 p.m.
According to Rumson Police Chief Robert Boyer, the Rumson Police Department received a call from the Monmouth County 911 Center at approximately 5:24 a.m. Tuesday, also reporting a missing person who had gone fishing in a kayak in the area around the bridge.
Rumson and Middletown police responded to the call, while the USCG launched a boat crew from Station Sandy Hook and an aircrew from Air Station Cape Cod for search operations. According to the spokesperson, “Sea Bright Fire Rescue recovered an unresponsive person in the water near the Oceanic Bridge.”
“A boat crew from Coast Guard Station Sandy Hook arrived on scene and received the unresponsive individual matching the description of the missing kayaker,” the spokesperson said.
Coast Guard crews transferred the individual to local emergency medical services, and the New Jersey State Police conducted the next of kin notification.
At this time the incident is being investigated by the Middletown Township Police Department.
The article originally appeared in the March 28 – April 3, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
