Bahamas authorities and local volunteers intensified search efforts Monday for a Michigan woman who disappeared Saturday night after falling from a small dinghy, officials said. The missing woman was identified Monday as Lynette Hooker, and her husband, Brian Hooker, told police the couple were swept apart by strong currents after she fell from their boat.
According to the Royal Bahamas Police Force and Hope Town Volunteer Fire and Rescue, the couple — both U.S. nationals — left Hope Town for nearby Elbow Cay at about 7:30 p.m. local time on Saturday aboard an 8-foot hard‑bottom dinghy. Brian Hooker told rescuers his wife “apparently bounced out of the boat,” Hope Town fire chief Troy Pritchard said, and that she was wearing a black bathing suit at the time.
Brian Hooker said Lynette fell overboard while holding the boat’s keys, which caused the engine to shut off, and that strong currents carried her away so he lost sight of her. He reportedly paddled the dinghy to shore and arrived at the Marsh Harbour Boat Yard at about 4 a.m. Sunday, where he informed someone who then notified authorities, the police said.
Search teams from the Royal Bahamas Police Force and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, Hope Town Volunteer Fire and Rescue, local volunteers and U.S. counterparts have been combing the waters and coastline. The U.S. Coast Guard’s Miami Sector provided air support on Sunday, officials said. “They’ve been out again today,” Pritchard told CBS News on Monday. “We still haven’t found anything.”
Police asked anyone in the community who might have information to come forward or submit anonymous tips through Crime Stoppers as the probe continues. No other details about the status of the search or whether investigators were treating the incident as suspicious were released Monday.
The case comes amid longstanding U.S. government warnings about maritime safety in the Bahamas. A U.S. State Department travel advisory issued in March 2025 cautioned that “boating is not well regulated” in the islands and that “injuries and deaths have occurred.” The advisory also warned that watercraft operated by unlicensed vendors may ignore weather forecasts and urged travelers to follow local weather and marine alerts.
Search-and-rescue operations remained ongoing on Monday. Authorities did not release additional personal details about Lynette Hooker, and officials have not provided a timeline for when the search will be scaled back or any updates on potential leads.