The Coast Guard has suspended its search for a 50-year-old man who was reported missing while transiting from New York to Florida aboard his 35-foot recreational vessel, Monday.
Michael Bye was reported missing while aboard his boat, the H.M.S. Me II.
Watchstanders at the Coast Guard’s Fifth District command center were notified at 7:40 p.m., Thursday that Bye had failed to make contact at an agreed upon time by a family member.
The Coast Guard searched approximately 10,000 square miles using assets and personnel from the following units:
- Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City
- Coast Guard Station Hobucken
- Coast Guard Station Hatteras Inlet
- Coast Guard Station Emerald Isle
- Coast Guard Station Wrightsville Beach
- Coast Guard Station Fort Macon
- Coast Guard Station Oak Island
- Coast Guard Station Ocracoke
- Coast Guard Station Elizabeth City
“The decision to suspend a search-and-rescue case is never one we come to lightly,” said Capt. Jeffrey Janszen, Chief of Response for the Fifth Coast Guard District. “We offer our deepest sympathies to the family of Mr. Bye in this difficult time.”
Bye was scheduled to meet a friend in Belhaven, North Carolina, but did not arrive, the Coast Guard said. Coast Guard search-and-rescue coordinators found his last position via cellphone in the vicinity of Kill Devil Hills.
Anyone with additional information regarding this case should contact the D5 command center on VHF-FM channel 16 or at 757-398-6390.