Crime & Safety
Search Underway After Woman Falls Off Prudence Island Ferry
The Coast Guard continued to search overnight before the full effort resumed at first light.
PORTSMOUTH, RI — A search is underway after a woman fell off the Prudence Island Ferry into Narragansett Bay Monday night. The woman is a 39-year-old Prudence Island resident, police said.
According to Portsmouth police, the woman fell into the water around 6:30 p.m. The ferry left Bristol at 5:45 p.m., headed to Prudence Island. The U.S. Coast Guard, Portsmouth and Bristol police conducted the water search, which was difficult due to high winds and rough seas.
Crews were called in from the Coast Guard stations in Castle Hill and Cape Cod, along with the Narragansett Bay Marine Task Force, to assist in the search. Around 10:40 p.m., a Coast Guard cutter arrived to continue to search overnight. The other crews returned at first light.
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Witnesses from the ferry told Portsmouth police that the woman was alone on the deck of the ferry before she fell, and that she climbed up onto the rail.
#HappeningNow @USCG is responding to a PIW in the vicinity of #NarragansettBay, RI. CG Station Castle Hill, CG Air Station Cape Cod, and the Narragansett Bay Marine Task Force are engaged in the search. #SAR
— USCGNortheast (@USCGNortheast) December 7, 2021
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