Boater hasn’t been heard from since departing North Carolina in July, officials say

A boater who set sail out of North Carolina on an epic journey to New Zealand has gone missing in the Atlantic, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

Concerns are growing that Charles Zimmerman, 57, may have encountered trouble after departing Fort Macon south of the Outer Banks, officials say.

“Zimmerman was last heard from on July 23,” USCG officials said in a news release. “He had informed a family member that he would be departing in his sailing vessel en route the Mediterranean Sea with a potential port stop in Bermuda.”

His 35-foot sailboat is green and white, and goes by the name Trude Zena.

Details of where Zimmerman lives were not released. Multiple commenters on the USCG Facebook post say he works at a Lowe’s in the New Bern area, about a 40-mile drive northwest of Fort Macon.

Coast Guard officials are urging anyone with information on sightings of the boat to call the USCG 24/7 hot line at 757-398-6390.

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