The boat overturned in Westport.
Credit: Metro file photo
Rescue crews recovered the bodies of two duck hunters and rescued a third after their boat apparently overturned in the Westport River, authorities said Tuesday.
Two of the hunters were found dead by the Westport harbormaster and the third man was helped after a U.S. Coast Guard rescue swimmer reached him, said Petty Officer Robert Simpson. The rescued man was taken to a Rhode Island hospital, Simpson said. The Bristol district attorney’s office identified the men as Steven James, 53, of Marshfield and Robert Becher, 55, of Connecticut. The survivor was identified as Gregg Angell, 51, of Westport.
State police said they were called to the area of the Westport River Tuesday morning to assist Westport Police after a report of an overturned skiff and three missing duck hunters. State police said they dispatched dive teams and its air unit to the scene. Simpson said the Coast Guard launched a helicopter to assist in the search.
Authorities found the skiff and later found the men.
It was not immediately clear how the boat overturned and what happened to the hunters.
State police are investigating.
Follow Michael Naughton on Twitter @metrobosmike.
