August 31, 2017 — Family and friends of two Gaston County cousins lost off the North Carolina coast are putting together their own a private navy of fishing and charter boats to help in the search.
The effort has so far collected 30 privately owned boats to join the U.S. Coast Guard in searching for Steve Chaney and David Hambrick. The two have been missing since Sunday. Chaney is from the Belmont area and Hambrick lives in Stanley.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to pay for fuel needed by the volunteer searchers, said Dana Keener, Hambrick’s sister in law. The campaign had raised nearly $12,000 toward its $20,000 goal by Thursday morning.
Keener says they’re looking for as many boaters as possible to join the private search, which began Wednesday.