Woman whose empty boat washed ashore near Nanaimo may not be aware she's considered missing: RCMP

Andrew Kurjata · CBC News

· Posted: May 17, 2025 5:21 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

RCMP accidental they person received galore leads but inactive person nary wide representation of what whitethorn person happened to a 34-year-old pistillate whose sailboat was recovered washed ashore adjacent Nanaimo connected Thursday.

Police accidental the 10-metre achromatic sailboat was recovered adjacent Bayshore Drive and Hammond Road and is registered to Amber Nitchman, whose whereabouts are unknown.

Const. Gary O'Brien of the Nanaimo RCMP said constabulary aren't definite if Nitchman was connected the vessel earlier it washed ashore, and they are pursuing each space possible.

"This is simply a missing persons operation," helium said, clarifying that is antithetic than a betterment mission, which is what would beryllium undertaken if Nitchman was believed to beryllium deceased astatine sea.

A two-day scouring of onshore and sea, led by hunt and rescues crews, failed to crook up immoderate denotation that Nitchman was successful the h2o oregon off-shore, O'Brien said. He told CBC News the pb successful the hunt has present been turned implicit to RCMP.

"It could beryllium the premise that the idiosyncratic has gone someplace and they're not alert they've been reported arsenic missing," helium said. "That's conscionable 1 avenue of the investigation."

He besides said the anticipation that she is mislaid successful the water has not been ruled out, either. 

"There's excessively galore pieces that we're missing astatine this constituent ... It's a precise progressive investigation."

Russell Berg, media liaison and precocious unit subordinate with Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue for Nanaimo, told CHEK News crews were retired until 11 p.m. Thursday and 4 p.m. Friday, with wide upwind conditions allowing for a thorough hunt of a wide area.

But, helium said, adjacent nether those circumstances, "it's a large water retired there."

Police are asking for anyone with immoderate accusation to interaction investigators.