Articles Posted in Vessel Sinkings

April 15, 2016

Three crewmen from the commercial fishing vessel Privateer have been rescued by the Coast Guard. The seventy-five foot fishing vessel began taking on water in eight foot swells Friday afternoon approximately a mile from Grays Harbor.  The vessel’s crew radioed for help, stating that they were taking on water through an 8-10  inch hole and were preparing to abandon ship.  A motor life boat from the Coast Guard Station in Grays Harbor was dispatched and attempted to aid the vessel with dewatering pumps; however, the pumps could not keep up with the flooding and the crew was forced to abandon the sinking vessel.   There were no reported injuries in the accident, although one crewman was evaluated for possible heart problems.

The Coast Guard indicated that the crew of the Privateer appeared to be well trained and prepared for an emergency such as this.  However, commercial fishing vessel sinkings continue to happen with far too much regularity along the Washington and Oregon Coast.  Maritime safety regulations now require all commercial fishing vessels  to carry mandatory life saving equipment such as EPIRBS and survival suits.  Fishing vessels are also required to conduct regular safety drills in abandon ship procedures.  However, for most fishing vessels there are few safety requirements relating to regular inspection and maintenance of the vessels’ hull and machinery.  The cause of this accident is currently unknown and under investigation by the Coast Guard.

The 65 foot fishing vessel CAPTAIN JOHN sank Sunday night 30 miles west of La Push. Five crewmen aboard the vessel are reported safe.  The vessel sent a distress call to the Coast Guard at 2:45 p.m. Sunday afternoon indicating the vessel was flooding and in danger of sinking.  The Coast Guard dispatched a Dolphin Helicopter and motor life boat to the scene.  A Coast Guard rescue swimmer helped the crew into the CAPTAIN JOHN’s life raft, where the crew remained until the motor life boat arrived on the scene.  Weather conditions were reported as mild with seas of 2-3 feet and winds of 15 MPH.   The vessel was reported to have been loaded with 70,000 pounds of Dover Sole.

Commercial fishing off the coast of Washington and Oregon remains extremely dangerous. Few regulations apply to commercial fishing vessels of this size. The cause of this sinking is under investigation.  The Coast Guard investigation will likely investigate the construction and design of the vessel, and maintenance and repair records for the vessel, as well as the vessel’s safety equipment.   In similar sinkings in this area, such as the LADY CECELIA in 2012, the Coast Guard investigation has looked at how the loading of the vessel may have impacted stability.

As the F/V KUPREANOF sank in stormy seas on June 10 near Lituya Bay in Southeast Alaska, a Sitka Coast Guard helicopter crew plucked the ship’s four crewmembers out of the water and flew them to the safety of Sitka emergency services.

That morning, the captain of the 73-foot F/V KUPREANOF called in a MAYDAY to the Coast Guard stating that the boat was taking on water and sinking. He had ordered his crew to don their immersion suits and ready the life raft. He was worried about one of his older crewmembers who couldn’t swim. Weather conditions were 7-foot high waves and 10-mph winds.

The Coast Guard Jayhawk helicopter arrived at the vessel just as the crewmembers were abandoning ship and swimming to the life raft. The rescue team hoisted each crewmember out of the water and then flew back to the Sitka Medical Center. All four men were reported in good condition.

At 3 am on May 3, 2015, the Coast Guard received a May Day call from Kenneth Martin, Master of the 52-foot F/V SEA BEAST. Martin told them that the stern was taking on water and the boat was sinking approximately 14 miles offshore of La Push, WA. Three crewmen successfully abandoned ship into a life raft, but the SEA BEAST reportedly capsized with Martin still onboard.

The Coast Guard found and rescued the three men in the life raft and took them to Station Quillayute River in La Push. Coast Guard helicopter crews and motor lifeboat crews searched over 498 square miles looking for Martin, but they finally suspended the search after 17 hours, said Petty Officer Jonathan Klingenberg, spokesman for the Seattle Coast Guard.

“One of the hardest decisions the Coast Guard has to make is when to suspend a search for a missing person,” said Cmdr. Brian Meier, of the Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound response division. “Our heartfelt condolences go out to the friends, family and loved ones of the vessel captain.”

A crewmember on board the 80-foot tender F/V EYAK called the Juneau Coast Guard at 5:45 am on January 19, 2015 to report they had grounded and the boat was taking on water. The tender was located near Calligan Island, about 16 miles south of Sitka Harbor. The Coast Guard flew a helicopter from Air Station Sitka and also asked for assistance from Sitka Police and Fire Departments and the Alaska State Troopers.

Sitka’s emergency response vessel (ERV), jointly operated by the fire department and police department, and a boat from the Alaska State Troopers arrived at the EYAK around 7:30 a.m. The four EYAK crewmembers wore survival suits and had inflated the life raft. Sitka Police Ryan Silva was aboard the ERV. “I’m just glad we got there when we did because it was under 45 minutes later that it (the EYAK) slipped into the water fully,” Silva said.

The crew was transferred safely to the ERV, along with their dog. All four were uninjured and did not require medical attention, according to the Trooper report.

The Coast Guard Alaska Sector and five Good Samaritan vessels are assisting the Russian Kamchatka Border Guard Directorate (KBGD) in finding 54 crew members missing from the capsized South Korean trawler 501 ORYONG. According to the KBGD, the crew was hauling in its catch of pollock when a wave hit and flooded the boat’s cargo holds. The 326-foot vessel sank off the coast of Chukotka, Russia on November 30, 2014.

Coast Guard spokeswoman Petty Officer 2nd Class Diana Honings said that officials from the KBGD requested U.S. assistance with the search on December 1. They reported that a Good Samaritan vessel had rescued seven people in a life raft, one person was confirmed dead, and 54 were missing. A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak Hercules airplane crew and the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter MUNRO along with a Dolphin helicopter were sent to the scene Monday morning.

Weather on scene was reported as half-mile visibility with a 250-foot ceiling, 22-foot waves and water temperature at 57 degrees.

The Coast Guard rescued five crew members from their life raft as the fishing vessel BLAZER sank eight miles west of Siletz Bay, Oregon the early morning of November 29, 2014. Coast Guard North Bend, Oregon received a MAYDAY call at 4:17 a.m. from the 75-foot fishing vessel BLAZER stating they were disabled, taking on water, and dumping crab pots. Ten minutes later crew called again to report they were donning survival suits and deploying the life raft.

Three of the survivors were rescued from the life raft by the Newport Coast Guard Dolphin helicopter crew and treated for minor injuries. The other two survivors were transferred from the life raft to a Coast Guard Depoe Bay 47-foot Motor Life Boat (MLB).

The BLAZER sank in 420 feet of water with reportedly 2,000 gallons of diesel aboard. There have been no reports of pollution at this time. North Bend pollution responders are monitoring the situation and will respond if needed.

At 7:31 am on October 17, 2014, the owner of the 67-foot recreational vessel LADY A made a we’re-abandoning-ship distress call to the Coast Guard in Port Angeles, WA. The Coast Guard immediately sent a response boat and helicopter to the sinking boat located north of the Dungeness Spit in Sequim, WA. The crew of TOKYO EXPRESS, a 664-foot tanker traveling through the Strait of Juan de Fuca, also sent a response boat to assist. Both response boats arrived at the LADY A around 8:10 am and found the man and woman, local residents of the area, still on their boat. They were transferred to the Coast Guard response boat and taken to the Port Angeles station. Neither crewmember was injured, the Coast Guard reported.

Lady A reportedly sank in 180 feet of water with approximately 700 gallons of diesel on board. No sheen has been reported. Pollution responders from the Coast Guard’s incident management division have been notified and are working with the vessel owner and the Washington State Department of Ecology to decide if the vessel can be salvaged. It is unknown at this time why the boat sank.