Hit-and-Run Off Montauk Point

Two men escaped injury by leaping overboard just before their boat was struck by another vessel off Montauk Point last Thursday night. The boat that rammed Nicholas T. Sorbi’s 2001 21-foot-long Seaswirl Striper did not stop and has not been found.

According to Senior Chief Eric Best, the commanding officer of the Montauk Coast Guard station, Mr. Sorbi and his passenger, whose name has not been released, jumped overboard when they realized that the other vessel, approximately 30 feet in length, was going to hit their boat.

The impact damaged the stern and port side of the Striper and disabled its engine.

There were many other boats in the area that night, Chief Best said, and the Coast Guard responded, sending out a 47-foot rescue craft.

The men were out of the water within minutes, he said, and the disabled Striper was towed to the Star Island Coast Guard Station, where it remained as of yesterday. Mr. Sorbi and his passenger returned to Massachusetts, where they live.

Mr. Sorbi’s father, Randall Sorbi, spoke briefly about the incident on Tuesday, saying that he believed police have identified the operator of the vessel that fled. East Hampton Town Police Captain Chris Anderson declined to confirm that investigators know the identity of the missing boat operator.

Anyone with information has been asked to contact police at 537-7575.