Police: Rumored ‘casket’ in river turns out to be dock

Police were called to investigate a concrete slab resembling a coffin that sparked complaints of a possible water hazard

September 04, 2020 07:16 PM

AP20248455187961 (1).jpg — A hydrographic operations team pulls what turned out to be a floating dock from the South River, a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay near Annapolis, Md., Thursday, Sept. 3, 2020.

By Rachael Pacella
The Capital, Annapolis, Md.

What was rumored on social media to be a casket floating in the South River is actually a floating dock, Maryland Natural Resources Police said Thursday.

A post to a local radio station’s Facebook page fueled speculation over a hazard in the South River with an arched top and square sides that looked like a coffin.

The Department of Natural Resources hydrographic operations team and the Maryland Natural Resources Police went out to investigate, according to a spokesperson, and discovered a far less spooky hazard: a floating dock.

The wayward dock was removed from the water Thursday.