Body of Missing Boater Ciro Stellges Found
The U.S. Coast Guard recovered the body of missing boater Ciro Stellges Monday morning near Duck Pond Point in Southold.
A massive search involving the Coast Guard and numerous local agencies was launched Sunday after the Riverhead Police Department received a call from a boater on the Long Island Sound reporting his sailboat was taking on water about three miles north of Jacobs Point. Authorities identified the boater as 59-year-old Ciro Stellges of Selden. According to Riverhead police, Stellgas was sailing from James Creek on Thursday and headed to Port Washington aboard a 26-foot fiberglass sailboat named “MAC.”
“On behalf of the men and women of Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound, I offer my deepest condolences to the family members and friends affected by this tragedy,” said Captain Ed Cubanski, the commander of Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound. “Our thoughts are with them in their time of grief. We appreciate the support of local port partners in our aggressive search and rescue efforts. Response crews worked tirelessly and covered an enormous search area to locate Mr. Stellges.”
The search went on for more than 19 hours, according to the Coast Guard, encompassing more than 400 square miles.
The Coast Guard mobilized rescue crews from Cape Cod, New Haven and New London. Suffolk County Police Department marine and air division aided in the search as well as the Riverhead, Wading River and Southold police departments.