Robert F. Kennedy’s granddaughter and her eight-year-old son are missing after their kayak got blown away when they paddled into a Maryland bay to retrieve a ball
- A mother, 40, and her young son were seen in a ‘small canoe or kayak’ drifting in a bay at the Columbia Beach community pier at 4.30pm
- David McKean confirmed on Thursday that his wife, Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean, and son, eight-year-old Gideon Joseph Kennedy McKean, were missing
- McKean said the pair ‘popped into a canoe to chase it down. They just got farther out than they could handle and couldn’t get back in’
- Authorities called the search off at 7.30pm on Thursday, citing darkness
- They did, however, find the kayak, and have resumed the search on Friday
The Maryland mother and son who disappeared when their kayak drifted down Cheasapeake Bay on Thursday have been identified as Maeve Kennedy Townsend and her son, Gideon Joseph Kennedy McKean.
Their identities were confirmed by Maeve’s husband, David McKean on Thursday afternoon. McKean is the granddaughter of Senator Robert F Kennedy McKean and the grand-niece of former president John F Kennedy.
David McKean told the Washington Post that the family had been at a home belonging to his wife’s mother, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, when a ball being played with flew out into the water.
David McKean confirmed on Thursday that his wife, Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean, and son Gideon Joseph Kennedy McKean (center right) were missing
McKean said the pair ‘popped into a canoe to chase it down. They just got farther out than they could handle and couldn’t get back in.’
Maeve Kennedy Townsend McKean is the executive director of the Georgetown University Global Health Initiative.
The disappearance comes less than a year after Saoirse Kennedy Hill, another of Robert F Kennedy’s granddaughters, died from an overdose at the age of 22.
McKean is the granddaughter of Senator Robert F Kennedy McKean and the grand-niece of former president John F Kennedy
The Anne Arundel County Fire Department said in a Friday statement that dispatch received a call at 4.30pm on Thursday saying that two people in a ‘small canoe or kayak’ were drifting in the bay at the Columbia Beach community pier off Shady Side.
Firefighters and water rescue were dispatched to the scene. Firefighters confirmed that two people in a small vessel were drifting several miles south from the pier in Chesapeake Bay.
Both boats and helicopters were used to search for the pair.
State Coast Guards and a fireboat from the City of Annapolis Fire Department located the kayak at 7pm.
Authorities called the search off at 7.30pm on Thursday, citing darkness. The search was resumed on Friday
Maryland Natural Resources Police is leading the investigation, the release states.
The Anne Arundel County Fire Department said in a Friday statement that dispatch received a call at 4.30pm on Thursday saying that two people in a ‘small canoe or kayak’ were drifting in the bay at the Columbia Beach community pier off Shady Side
The Anne Arundel County Fire Department Dive Team and Marine Division are assisting the Maryland Natural Resources Police with the search for the pair.
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan’s coronavirus-related shutdown has prohibited most forms of recreational boarding, but kayaking and paddleboarding are allowed.
The state has more than 2,700 people tested positive with COVID-19 while 42 people have died.
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan’s coronavirus-related shutdown has prohibited most forms of recreational boarding, but kayaking and paddleboarding are allowed. The state has more than 2,700 people tested positive with COVID-19 while 42 people have died