Search for missing man suspended
The active search for the 49-year-old man who went missing and is presumed to have drowned in the Hudson River last week was suspended at 6 p.m. Sunday, pending further developments, authorities said.
Since Tuesday, July 24, an extensive search of the Hudson River off of the city of Poughkeepsie shoreline has been conducted, authorities said.
“Various search methods were utilized, including aerial search by helicopters, surface searches by boats and underwater searches utilizing sonar and police divers,” authorities said in a press release. The underwater search was called off Thursday afternoon, the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office said.
The swimmer, identified by Poughkeepsie police as city resident Paul P. Moschitta, went under just before noon Tuesday in the area of Waryas Park while trying to help a fellow swimmer who was struggling, authorities have said. The other swimmer was rescued, but Moschitta never surfaced.
On Wednesday, authorities said the search had changed from a rescue effort to a recovery mission.
Participating agencies included the City of Poughkeepsie Police Department, City of Poughkeepsie Fire Department, Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office, Dutchess County Regional Underwater Search and Recovery Team, Ulster County Sheriff’s Office, New York State Police, New York State Park Police and the United States Coast Guard.