American Woman Swept Out to Sea After Falling Overboard Near Bahamas

An unidentified American woman disappeared into open water near the Bahamas Saturday night after falling overboard from an 8-foot dinghy she and her husband were piloting between two Abaco islands, the Royal Bahamas Police Force said in a statement Sunday.

The couple set out from Hope Town at approximately 7:30 p.m. Saturday, bound for Elbow Cay. At some point during the crossing, the woman fell into the water. She had the small hard-bottom vessel's keys on her when she went overboard, which caused the engine to shut off immediately, leaving her husband without propulsion in darkened open water.

"He lost sight of her," police said in their statement. "He then paddled the vessel to shore."

The husband paddled alone for hours through the night before reaching Marsh Harbour Boat Yard, where he arrived around 4 a.m. Sunday and alerted someone to what had happened. Police said he reported that his wife had been swept away by a strong current after she fell in.

The Royal Bahamas Police Force, which issued the public statement after the husband's report, said the woman has not been identified. Authorities did not immediately detail what search and rescue resources had been deployed or provide any update on whether the woman had been located as of Sunday.

The waters between Hope Town and Elbow Cay sit within the Abaco island chain in the northern Bahamas, an area popular with American boaters and tourists. The combination of darkness, a strong current, and a disabled vessel with no engine significantly complicated any prospect of immediate rescue.