Articles Posted in Alaska

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On the morning of Wednesday, July 27th, crewmembers aboard OCEAN PEACE and SEAFISHER were focused on the harvest of Atka mackerel. Some 55 miles away, another trawler vessel, the ALASKA JURIS, was taking on water.

Upon receiving this distress call, the two vessels halted fishing and processing to begin the 6-hour journey to rescue the JURIS crew. All 46 crewmembers once aboard the JURIS were safely transported to the Aleutian Island port of Adak by Thursday evening.

“They said we got to go, and we’re on it,” said Todd Loomis, an official with Ocean Peace Inc., which operates the two factory trawlers.

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At around 11:30am on Tuesday, July 26, Coast Guard 17th District watchstanders received an electronic position alert from fishing vessel ALASKA JURIS. The vessel had been traveling in the Bering Sea near Alaska’s Aleutian Island chain, 150 miles northwest of Adak when it began taking on water. Coast Guard contacted the crew directly, confirming that the 220-foot vessel was in distress, and all 46 crewmembers had begun donning survival suits and boarding the three life rafts.

The Coast Guard issued an urgent marine information broadcast to surrounding vessels, and sent a Kodiak HC-130 Hercules airplane and two Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters to the scene. Vessels Spar Canis, Vienna Express, Seafisher, and Ocean Pease diverted to assist. Seas were calm at the time of rescue, though heavy fog presented poor visibility. ALASKA JURIS crewmembers boarded Good Samaritan vessels around 5:00pm, and began the 13-hour voyage to Adak, AK.

Lt. Joseph Schlosser of the U.S. Coast Guard reported to the Alaska Dispatch News that preliminary information suggests the sinking could be tied to mechanical problems in the ship’s engine room. Definitive cause remains under investigation. There are no reports of injuries.

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A father and son, identified as 75-year-old Larry Roger McWilliams and 48-year-old Gary Roger McWilliams, died Monday, May 30th, after their fishing boat overturned in Glacier Bay National Park. The cause of the vessel capsize remains a mystery, as the weather was clear and calm at the time of the incident.

Four addition passengers aboard the privately-owned, 21-foot aluminum vessel made it to safety. Tom VandenBerg, who was aboard the vessel at the time of capsize, reported that a fellow passenger swam to a nearby island and flagged down a passing boat. He credited this effort as the sole reason that the four survived.

The fishing boat overturned about 10 miles from park headquarters, and officials swiftly dispatched large and small search vessels to the site after receiving word of the incident. Two passengers were found by charter boat operator, Jim Kerns, while others remained in the water. The crew of a tour vessel, the Wilderness Discoverer, pulled the father and son from the water to perform CPR, but were unable to revive the two.

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A fisherman aboard the BARBARA J has been airlifted for medical treatment. The crewman reportedly was injured in a fall down the vessel’s stairs and needed emergency medical treatment.  The accident happened on Sunday near Unimak Pass.  Weather conditions were reported as 29 mph winds with 6 foot seas.  The crewman was taken by helicopter to Cold Bay, where he was transferred to Anchorage for further medical treatment.

Slip and falls down vessel stairs and vessel ladders frequently result in serious injury to fishing boat crewmen.  It is important that all vessels have safely constructed and designed ladders.  Stairs should be constructed at safe angles, have proper rise and depth, have non slip surfaces, and be equipped with proper hand rails.  Current safe construction standards for vessel stairs can be found in ASTM F-1166-07.

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Crew on the 35-foot F/V ALASKA PRIDE radioed the Coast Guard at 4:30 am on March 12, 2015 after the boat began taking on water in Izhut Bay near Kodiak, Alaska. The boat’s pumps were not able to keep up with the flooding caused by a possible puncture in the bow. A Kodiak Jayhawk helicopter crew flew to the vessel and delivered a dewatering pump to the four crewmembers. The Coast Guard communicated with the ALASKA PRIDE crew every fifteen minutes as the Good Samaritan vessel ROSELLA escorted them back to Kodiak for repairs. No injuries were reported.

“The capability of our aircrews to transport dewatering pumps to vessels at sea can often prevent a small problem from turning into a life-or-death situation,” said Coast Guard Petty Officer 3rd Class Joshua Yates, watchstander, Sector Anchorage. “Mariners should always be proactive and notify the Coast Guard immediately if an emergency occurs.”

Weather on scene was reported as 5-foot seas and 17 mph winds with temperatures in the teens.

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A crab fisherman reportedly injured his abdomen while pulling in crab pots on the F/V IRENE H on January 13, 2015. Crew from the fishing vessel called the Coast Guard to report the injury and ask for medical assistance. The Kodiak Coast Guard Air Station then flew a Jayhawk helicopter crew to Shelikof Strait and the IRENE H.

Weather conditions were rough: reportedly 25 mph winds and 7-foot seas.

“The operation was challenging from the start,” said Lt. Greg Dahl, pilot of the Jayhawk. “The dynamic weather conditions made for a rough ride but once on scene, the captain and crew of the vessel were very cooperative which enabled us to smoothly execute a successful rescue.”

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The Coast Guard is preparing for an incoming severe weather system to hit the Bering Sea and Western Alaska on Friday, November 7, 2014. The storm, remnants of Super Typhoon Nuri merging with a cold polar front, could bring fierce winds between 50 and 80 mph and massive waves in excess of 40 feet.

The Coast Guard has already flown a Jayhawk helicopter crew from Kodiak to an operating location in Cold Bay. They also notified the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Munro, patrolling near Dutch Harbor, with a Dolphin helicopter crew to stand by to assist fishing vessels, crew, and citizens.

“Our highest priority is protecting the safety of life at sea,” said Capt. Joseph Deer, chief of incident management, 17th District. “We are encouraging all mariners to monitor National Weather Service reports and take appropriate safety precautions, such as pulling into a safe harbor or taking shelter in the lee of an island, in order to safeguard their crews.”

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The BRITTANEY MOE, a 143 foot barge, is adrift in 12 foot seas and 50 mile an hour winds southwest of Kodiak in the Shelikof Strait. The barge had been under tow by the tug SEAHAWK when it was reportedly lost early Tuesday morning. The barge is not in danger of going aground and recovery efforts are underway.

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The Coast Guard received a mayday call at 6:54 am Friday morning, March 10th from the 34-foot gillnetter, Slayer. The caller stated, “Going down, two hands on board Port Gardner.”

The hands onboard Slayer were Rick Nebert, 42, of Juneau, and Matthew Young, 18, of Sitka. Rick was the owner/operator of the vessel. Rick’s wife, Jennifer, said that her husband had been longlining for cod near Kake and was headed to Sitka to unload his catch.

Within 50 minutes of the mayday call, a Coast Guard helicopter arrived at the scene, and with the assistance of a nearby vessel, the Aleutian Dream, searched the area. Approximately five miles south of Port Gardner they located a raft, survival suit, and a life ring. Later in the morning an additional HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter and the Coast Guard Cutter, Anacapa, joined in the search. By early afternoon, two Civil Air Patrol aircraft also joined in the effort. On Friday night the Coast Guard used a helicopter equipped with infra red and night vision technology.
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A 23-year-old man lost most of his hand on a fishing vessel near Akutan Island on Monday night, the Coast Guard said.

Louis Acosta was on the 120-foot Trailblazer, homeported in Newport, Ore., when the incident occurred near the island, Lt. Mara Booth-Miller said. She said the Coast Guard was still investigating and it did not immediately know how the accident happened.

Booth-Miller said the boat was fishing for Alaska Seafood Producers.

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