Doctor Dies in Accident After Getting Ejected into the Water and Struck by His Own Boat

A New Jersey doctor has died after being thrown overboard from a boat, which then struck him.

Police responded to the accident in Barnegat Bay, Little Egg Harbor Township, just before 10 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 24, according to a statement shared with PEOPLE from the New Jersey State Police.

Preliminary findings indicate that two people were on the 27-foot vessel when it “struck a large wake,” ejecting both into the water.

“The vessel then continued to circle and struck one of the occupants,” police said, identifying the victim as Karl Chen, 56, of Princeton.

The second person, who was not named, sustained minor injuries.

According to local outlet The SandPaper, the second man was rescued by a good Samaritan and was able to walk to the ambulance on his own, said Deb Whitcraft, Beach Haven First Aid captain.

Police said the investigation remains ongoing and had no further details to share.

Chen was a physician affiliated with several major hospitals in the region.

“We are saddened to hear of the tragic passing of Dr. Karl Chen,” Leslie D. Hirsch, president and CEO of Saint Peter’s Healthcare System, said in a statement to NJ Advance Media. “Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, colleagues, and patients at this very difficult time.”

The Saint Peter’s Healthcare System did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

Tributes quickly followed online.

“The world is a little dimmer tonight,” read one Facebook comment about Chen’s death.

Another person added: “Dr. Karl Chen was a brilliant and compassionate doctor, he loved his family more than anything and loved to brag about his kids. He saved my mom’s life when she was very sick. He was one of a kind. The nicest guy you could ever meet.”