An American woman was swept out to sea after she fell overboard during an evening dinghy trip with her husband off the Bahamas, and search crews were still looking for her Sunday. The couple had set off from Hope Town about 7:30 p.m. Saturday bound for Elbow Cay when the woman went into the water and was carried away by a strong current.
The Royal Bahamas Police Force said the woman's husband told investigators she had the boat's keys with her when she fell overboard, causing the engine to shut off. He said he lost sight of her and then paddled the 8-foot, hard-bottom boat for hours before reaching shore early Sunday. Police said he arrived at Marsh Harbour Boat Yard about 4 a.m. Sunday, where a person who heard his account alerted authorities.
Police on Abaco launched an investigation, and the Royal Bahamas Defense Force and Hope Town Fire & Rescue were searching the area. The woman was not identified. The State Department said it was working with Bahamian authorities to provide assistance.
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The case comes as the Bahamas remains under a U.S. State Department Level 2 travel advisory, which warns Americans to be wary in tourist centers and says boating is not well regulated, with injuries and deaths having occurred. The advisory does not change what happened on Saturday night, but it helps explain why a routine dinghy crossing can turn dangerous so quickly in Bahamian waters.
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For the husband, the trip ended in a lonely paddle through the dark and an appeal for help just before dawn. For the woman who vanished overboard, the search had no clear end by Sunday, only the widening question of whether crews can reach her in time.
