By:Alec Moore
The body of Brian Tomsa, 37, of Middlesex was found in the Raritan River near the Nevius Street bridge early Monday morning, at the Hillsborough-Raritan border.
Authorities say Mr. Tomsa had set out on a kayaking outing Sunday morning.
Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne Forrest said state medical examiners had yet to determine the cause of death.
"Anything’s possible, at this point we don’t know," he said. "The water tables are high and I don’t know how familiar he was with this river."
Prosecutor Forrest said that at approximately 10:30 a.m. Sunday, when Mr. Tomsa embarked on his kayaking excursion, he had planned to paddle down the river from Branchburg, near Route 202 and River Road, to a point in South Bound Brook where he had parked his vehicle.
"His plan was to end up at his vehicle in South Bound Brook, but when he never came back home and when there was no answer on his cell phone his wife called police," Mr. Forrest said.
At approximately 10 p.m., just after Mr. Tomsa’s wife had called police, rescue divers and boats were deployed by the county to conduct a search and rescue operation. Police, firefighters and Rescue Squad personnel from Hillsborough, Bridgewater, Somerville, Raritan, Manville, Bound Brook and New Brunswick participated in the search as well as New Jersey State Police, which used a helicopter.
Mr. Tomsa’s kayak was found partially submerged near a riverbank in New Brunswick. His lifejacket was found in the river near the border of Raritan and Bridgewater.
