The families and friends of two missing commercial fishermen are holding on to a sliver of hope that the men will be found after their boat began taking on water and vanished early Thursday about 40 miles off the New Jersey coast.

Paul Alexandre Matos, 30, of Bayville, and his crew member, Dennis Smalling, were aboard the 46-foot Queen Ann's Revenge when one of the men sent out a distress signal at about 1:20 a.m.

Matos' sister, Milene Oliveira, told NJ Advance Media Thursday afternoon that family and friends were becoming increasingly worried that the men wouldn't be coming home as hours rolled by and darkness approached Thursday.

"At this point, everybody has lost any hope that they'll be found alive -- it's been so long and the weather is cold, we're completely devastated," Oliveira said. "He was in the Navy (and) if there is a person who has extensive training with all of this, it's him -- which is why some of us are still holding on to some hope."

According to Matos' girlfriend, Amy Romano, Matos set out with Smalling late Monday night, leaving from what's locally known as "the clam dock" in Point Pleasant.

Pictured left, Paul Matos, 30, his girlfriend, Amy Romano, and their daughter.

A pair of fishermen who know the two men said they were out "dragging nets" and likely either fishing for fluke or porgies. They said the "whole fleet" was likely going out Thursday night to aid in the Coast Guard search for the missing fisherman, and that the boat was equipped with a life boat.

The Coast Guard was out searching the waters as of about 4:45 p.m. Thursday, according to Petty Officer 1st Class Seth Johnson, a spokesman at the Coast Guard's Atlantic City station.

Johnson said Coast Guard rescue crews were searching from the air and sea. He was not able to comment on how much longer rescuers would be searching.

Hours before the boat left on Monday, Matos and Romano -- who have a 5-month-old daughter -- went over the weather forecast, which concerned Romano because it showed a chance of high winds and waves later in the week.

"He promised me he wasn't going to stay out when the winds picked up or (when) the waves got bigger," Romano said.

After he left, the couple stayed in touch through email, and she wrote him on her concerns about the potential weather ahead.

Their last communication was at 2:36 p.m. on Wednesday, when Matos wrote, "I'm hauling back my gear now and heading home -- it's starting to get nasty," Romano said.

She said she emailed again that evening, but received no response, and said panic began to set in.

Paul Matos, 30, in his U.S. Navy photo

Around 4 a.m. Thursday, she woke up to a missed call from the Coast Guard and a text message from Matos' sister saying that his boat had gone down.

Eric Herner, a former crew member of the Queen Ann's Revenge, said that he left the crew just three weeks ago out of concern about the seaworthiness of the wooden fishing boat.

"A boat like that shouldn't have been out in that weather," Herner said. "One wrong wave can set off the whole thing."

The vessel previously operated under the name Virginia Sue, and was placed into service in 1957, according to Coast Guard records. It's officially owner is Matos' Black Beard Fishing LLC, which registered the boat in October. It weighs 32 tons.

The National Weather Service issued a small craft advisory at about 12:45 p.m. on Wednesday, effective through noon on Thursday, warning boaters about the potential for rough seas and gusty winds.

Waves off the coast of New Jersey were forecast to rise as high as four to seven feet, according to the advisory with winds 17 to 23 mph and gusts of 35 mph.

Oliveira, of Tinton Falls, said that family and friends were gathered at her mother's home in Brick on Thursday afternoon, waiting to hear from the Coast Guard.

Weather radar images from late Wednesday night into early Thursday show some light rain showers were occurring off the coast of Ocean County up through about 1 a.m., and then the rain had stopped, said Lance Franck, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service's regional office in New Jersey.

Waves off the coast of New Jersey, from the shore out to 20 nautical miles, were forecast to rise as high as four to seven feet, according to the small craft advisory.

The Coast Guard asked any mariners who found "items related to the fishing vessel" to call its Sector Delaware Bay installation at 215-271-4940.

Staff writers Jeff Goldman and Len Melisurgo contributed to this report.

Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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