Coast Guard searches for 3 duck hunters near Matagorda Bay

[The Patriot]

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Coast Guard and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department are searching for three men who went duck hunting in the vicinity of Carancahua Bay, between Port Lavaca and Palacios, and did not return Friday morning.

Missing are Starett Burke from Wallisville, Spencer Hall from Mont Belvieu, and Chris Ruckman from Dayton.

The men reportedly launched their 17-foot, green, flat-bottomed boat at about 4 a.m., from a place off County Road 312, on the east side of Carancahua Bay. Ruckman's girlfriend contacted Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi Command Center to report that they were overdue Friday evening, after they had not returned as expected at 10 or 11 a.m.

The command center watchstanders launched an Air Station Corpus Christi MH-65 Dolphin helicopter and contacted the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and Calhoun County Sheriff's Office to coordinate with their boat and land search efforts. The Coast Guard launched an HC-144 Ocean Sentry airplane and crew Saturday morning in addition to the helicopter searches.




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