CG ends search near Empire

NEW ORLEANS - Coast Guard Sector New Orleans received a report about 1:30 p.m. on (Monday) Nov. 11 of a sunken vessel some six nautical miles southwest of Empire, La. The CG and local agencies are searching for a Slidell, La., man, Mark Matherne, in the water. Matherne's boat was found sunk in the vicinity of Shell Island Bay. If anyone has any information please contact the Sector New Orleans command center at (504) 365-2544. (Coast Guard 11/11/19) Empire is located about 55 miles SSE of New Orleans. UPDATE: The CG ended its search Nov. 13 for a person in the water near Empire. CG crews searched more than 1,761 square-nautical miles for over 31 hours, but were unable to locate the missing man.