Missing boater in Clay County found dead

CLAY COUNTY, Fla. — UPDATE 3 p.m. 6/28/2021:

Missing boater out of Clay County has been found dead.

FWC has identified the man as Steven Doktor, saying he fell in the water for an unknown reason and didn’t resurface.

UPDATE 10:22 p.m. 6/27/2021

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is searching for a man who went missing on a boat Sunday evening.

It called in divers and a chopper from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office to help.

Action News Jax reporter Jessica Barreto spoke with boaters who watched the busy scene.

Boater Brian Stearns said, “We started going out around 6 o’clock and there was a lot of cops coming in. I could see that there was a dive unit starting to come out. Went up the river for about two hours, had dinner and came back and noticed there was a lot more activity.”

“We were launching the boat, all of a sudden, the police, Green Cove, Orange Park and Clay County all converged there,” Captain Jack Page said. “The fire truck came, and the ambulance came ... and I said, ‘Y’all need help?’ and they said, ‘Yeah, if you see anything, don’t touch it, just come tell us.’”

Those boaters also told Barreto the waters were rough today.

“The weather, the rain, wind, the water was choppy and I could hardly hold the boat straight,” Page explained. “It kept going right to left left to right.”

“For someone that hasn’t had training, you go deep, you get caught under something, or the tide takes you away, you’re not really gonna do too good,” Stearns added.

FWC says it has 24 hours to submit its preliminary report, so the only information we have right now is the fact that a man is missing in the water Sunday night.

However, we should be getting more information by Monday.

9:35 p.m. 6/27/2021

A male boater has gone missing from his boat near the Black Creek Marina in Green Cove Springs, police say.

A search has been launched in the area, led by Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission. A dive team with the Clay County Sheriff’s Office is also actively searching.

So far, the boater’s identity has not been released.

This is a developing story that will be updated once more information becomes available.

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