Police identify body found after boat capsized off Scituate

SCITUATE, Mass. — Police have identified the woman whose body was recovered Saturday night after the boat she was in capsized in waters off Scituate.

They identified the body as Barbara Warner, 78, of Boulder, Colorado, Scituate Police said on Sunday. Warner’s body was found after an hours-long search by USCG rescue teams.

Scituate Police said they received multiple 911 calls around 4:37 p.m. on Saturday reporting a boat in distress in the mouth of the North River just off the beach area known as “the Spit,” police said.

Scituate officers on scene learned that the boat had been overcome by sea conditions and lost power while entering the New Inlet.

Scituate Police and Fire Departments, joined by the Marshfield Harbormaster and assets from the United States Coast Guard Station Point Allerton, learned that one man and two elderly women were aboard the boat when it capsized.

The man driving the boat and one woman were safely brought onto the beach, but officials were still searching for the other woman.

Once the weather took a turn and the sun went down, all dive teams had to suspend their search on the water, but the METRO LEC Maritime Special Response Unit and Massachusetts Environmental Police remained on scene and conducted a coordinated side-scan sonar search of the water.

Around 9:45 p.m., the USCG told search teams that they found the body of the missing woman.

“Unfortunately, this is a tragic incident that highlights how quickly conditions can change on the water and the inherent dangers of boating, particularly in this area where the North and South Rivers converge with the open ocean,” Scituate Police said in a news release on Sunday.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Mrs. Warner during this difficult time.”

Before the woman’s body was recovered, neighbors spoke with Boston 25 News as crews searched the waters offshore.

“Just finding her would put her family at ease,” said Linda O’Malley, who lives nearby.

Scituate town administrator Jim Boudreau said a boat flipped over and two other people made it to shore safely.

“It is a very difficult search, it’s a tough place, the mouth of the North River is a very difficult place in the best of circumstances, you have adverse winds, you have tides, you have storm coming in so it’s a very difficult place to boat, nevermind do a search like this,” said Boudreau.

“It hits home because I’m 71, yeah I just feel terrible, devastated. I’ve been praying they find her, she’s got to be the grandmother, the mother of, you know, somebody,” said O’Malley.

The Massachusetts State Police says its Marine Unit, Dive Team, and Air Wing assisted with the search, along with the Environmental Police.

Correction: The article originally said the woman was 75 years old, according to the the USCG. They corrected to say she was 77 years old.

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