The Coast Guard on Monday suspended its search for five crew members believed to be aboard a fishing vessel that capsized in the Gulf of Alaska.
The Capsized Fishing Boat
The crew of the Wind Walker, an approximately 50-foot fishing boat, sent a mayday call that their ship was capsizing at around 12:07 a.m. local time on Sunday. The vessel overturned on the waters off Point Couverden.
The state ferry Hubbard reached the scene of the incident first before a Coast Guard helicopter and a response boat arrived, according to a press release. Two Coast Guard cutters also joined in the search, which covered more than 108 square nautical miles for nearly a day.
Those involved in the search were faced heavy snow and winds up to 60 mph.
What the Coast Guard Has Said
In a statement about the search being suspended, Chief Warrant Officer James Koon, a search and rescue mission coordinator at Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska, sent a message to the friends and families of those who were aboard the vessel.
“We stand in sorrow and solidarity with the friends and family of the people we were not able to find over the past 24 hours,” Koon said in the statement.
Koon added, “I am deeply grateful for the swiftness of our crews and other search assets who came together to amplify our efforts and completely saturate our search areas. Our collective hearts are with the friends and families of the who are experiencing the effects from this loss.”
James Poulson/The Daily Sitka Sentinel via AP
Survival Suits Found
During the search, rescuers found empty cold-water immersion suits, but one of the Coast Guard cutters using underwater sonar could not detect the Wind Walker.
According to The Associated Press (AP), Coast Guard Petty Officer John Hightower said the survival suits are made of a neoprene-like material “that you can put on very quickly and easily over your clothes, and it’s meant to help you survive in cold water.” The suits also contain flotation devices.
Hightower said it is not currently known if the suits had been worn.
He also said that because the Coast Guard had the Wind Walker’s emergency beacon GPS coordinates, the cutters search a relatively small area in the waters. Highwater said that it’s possible that the Wind Walker capsized and sank since the crew’s call indicated that the ship was overturning.
“That seems like the most likely but, you know, we try not to rule anything out since we haven’t been able to confirm it ourselves,” he said, according to the AP.
Anyone with information about the incident is requested to contact Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska watchstanders at (907) 463-2980.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
