[chris]

On May 31, 2023, an amateur-built Searey amphibious airplane, N2440S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sherrills Ford, NC. The pilot was not injured.

The airplane lost engine power, and the pilot conducted a forced landing to a lake. The accident was caused by the pilot's failure to configure the landing gear before the forced landing.

Also causal were an occluded gascolator and the pilot's lack of knowledge about the airplane's fuel system, which resulted in the pilot failing to locate and identify the gascolator's condition after a previous loss of engine power event.