Body found after tugboat strikes object, capsizes on Alabama River, officials say
A tugboat captain’s body was recovered by divers after the ship capsized on the Alabama River, officials say.
Coast Guard officials received a report at 4:39 p.m. on Oct. 14 that a tugboat struck an object on the river before capsizing, an 8th District Coast Guard spokesperson told McClatchy News in an email. The call came from Encore Dredging, he said.
The Coast Guard sent an MH-60 Jayhawk aircrew from the New Orleans air station to search the river for the boat, the spokesperson said, as they “did not have a water asset on scene.” Alabama state troopers, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, and several county responders also were involved in the search.
The incident occurred between mile marker 27 and 28 on the Alabama River, the spokesperson said.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency confirmed two people were on board, the U.S. Coast Guard said. One was a deckhand, who was rescued, and the other was the captain, who was “trapped in the pilothouse,” according to the spokesperson.
Alabama state troopers recovered the captain’s body, he said.
The tugboat was eventually salvaged and sent to Encore Dredging Co. in Mount Vernon, officials said. The boat was 27 feet long, AL.com reports.
The Coast Guard did not have information as of Oct. 17 on what the tugboat was doing on the water before hitting an object, the spokesperson said.
This story was originally published October 18, 2023 at 11:02 AM with the headline "Body found after tugboat strikes object, capsizes on Alabama River, officials say."
