The Coast Guard rescued three fishermen and is currently searching for the master of a 52-foot fishing vessel Sea Beast after it reportedly took on water, capsized and subsequently sank 14 miles offshore of Quillayute River, Sunday.
A Coast Guard Station Quillayute River 47-foot Motor Life Boat crew, an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles and the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Blue Shark are searching for the master of the Sea Beast who remains missing.
“The Coast Guard is actively searching for the master of the Sea Beast near Quillayute River and anyone in the area with information about the case is asked to call the Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound command center on VHF-FM radio Channel 16 or at 206-217-6001,” said Petty Officer 1st Class Joshua Morales, an operations specialist at Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound.
“Fortunately the other three crewmembers were able to safely abandon ship and have been recovered in good condition.”
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River received the initial mayday call from the master of the Sea Beast at 3 a.m., reporting the vessel was taking on water and they could not keep up with the flooding. The watchstanders instructed the fishermen to don survival suits and prepare to abandon ship into their life raft.
Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound Watchstanders assumed the case from Sector Columbia River and also directed the launch of Coast Guard Dolphin and MLB crews and diverted the Blue Shark to the scene. Three crewmen successfully abandoned ship and the vessel reportedly capsized with the master still aboard. The MLB crew rescued the three fishermen from the life raft and safely transported them to the pier in Quillayute River.
The incident occurred in the Olympic Marine Sanctuary and the Washington Department of Ecology has been notified. The Sea Beast can reportedly carry a maximum of 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel in its tanks, but no pollution has been reported at this time. The sunken vessel is not reported to be a hazard to navigation at this time. The incident is under investigation.
Weather on scene at the time of the sinking was reportedly 5 to 10 mph winds and 4-foot seas. The Sea Beast is reportedly homeported in Neah Bay.
//--------------------------///
LAPUSH — Three fishermen were rescued
and one remained missing Sunday afternoon after a Neah Bay-registered
commercial fishing vessel overturned before dawn in the ocean 14 miles off
LaPush.
Coast Guard boat and air crews continued searching Sunday evening for the unidentified master of the 52-foot commercial fishing boat Sea Beast, which capsized after 3 a.m. Sunday, said Petty Officer Jonathan Klingenberg, spokesman for the Coast Guard in Seattle.
Klingenberg said the master, if wearing a survival suit, has a “window of survivability” until about 10 p.m. Sunday, prompting rescuers to continue the search past dusk.
The Sea Beast reportedly took on water and issued a mayday call, Klingenberg said.
The crew abandoned the boat and were later rescued, but the skipper apparently remained aboard when it capsized.
A 47-foot motor life boat crew from Coast Guard Station Quillayute River, a MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew Air Station/Sector Field Office Port Angeles and the crew of the Coast Guard cutter Blue Shark were assigned to the search operation.
Coast Guard officials have not released the name of the missing man.
The website www.boatinfoworld.com, which tracks vessel registrations, lists the owner of the 41-year-old Sea Beast as Glen Halttunen Jr.
Duty personnel at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River received a mayday distress call from the master of the Sea Beast at 3 a.m., Klingenberg said.
The distress call, released by the Coast Guard on Sunday afternoon, described a desperate situation for the red and white boat, which keeps caught fish alive in an aerated tank in the hold.
‘We’re taking water’
“We’re taking water over our stern. Our stern . . . is failing fast. Our stern is sinking. We’re sinking right now,” said the voice on the radio, identified by the Coast Guard as the master of the Sea Beast.
[Video and audio of the mayday call from the Coast Guard are below.]
Coast Guard duty personnel instructed the fishermen to don their survival suits and abandon ship into their life raft as rescue crews within range of the Sea Beast’s position were dispatched to the location.
“Three crewmen successfully abandoned ship and the vessel reportedly capsized with the master still aboard,” Klingenberg said.
The ocean was relatively calm, with 5 to 10 mph winds and 4-foot seas, he said.
Klingenberg said the Coast Guard’s motorized lifeboat crew found the three fishermen in the life raft and took them to the pier at LaPush, where Station Quillayute River is located.
The three crew members from the life raft were reported to be in good condition.
The sinking occurred in the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, and the state Department of Ecology was notified by the Coast Guard because the Sea Beast can reportedly carry up to 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel.
No pollution from the sunken vessel was reported Sunday, and the Sea Beast was not thought to be a hazard to navigation.
Anyone with information about the sinking of the Sea Beast is asked to call the Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound command center on VHF-FM radio Channel 16 or by phoning 206-217-6001.
Coast Guard boat and air crews continued searching Sunday evening for the unidentified master of the 52-foot commercial fishing boat Sea Beast, which capsized after 3 a.m. Sunday, said Petty Officer Jonathan Klingenberg, spokesman for the Coast Guard in Seattle.
Klingenberg said the master, if wearing a survival suit, has a “window of survivability” until about 10 p.m. Sunday, prompting rescuers to continue the search past dusk.
The Sea Beast reportedly took on water and issued a mayday call, Klingenberg said.
The crew abandoned the boat and were later rescued, but the skipper apparently remained aboard when it capsized.
A 47-foot motor life boat crew from Coast Guard Station Quillayute River, a MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew Air Station/Sector Field Office Port Angeles and the crew of the Coast Guard cutter Blue Shark were assigned to the search operation.
Coast Guard officials have not released the name of the missing man.
The website www.boatinfoworld.com, which tracks vessel registrations, lists the owner of the 41-year-old Sea Beast as Glen Halttunen Jr.
Duty personnel at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River received a mayday distress call from the master of the Sea Beast at 3 a.m., Klingenberg said.
The distress call, released by the Coast Guard on Sunday afternoon, described a desperate situation for the red and white boat, which keeps caught fish alive in an aerated tank in the hold.
‘We’re taking water’
“We’re taking water over our stern. Our stern . . . is failing fast. Our stern is sinking. We’re sinking right now,” said the voice on the radio, identified by the Coast Guard as the master of the Sea Beast.
[Video and audio of the mayday call from the Coast Guard are below.]
Coast Guard duty personnel instructed the fishermen to don their survival suits and abandon ship into their life raft as rescue crews within range of the Sea Beast’s position were dispatched to the location.
“Three crewmen successfully abandoned ship and the vessel reportedly capsized with the master still aboard,” Klingenberg said.
The ocean was relatively calm, with 5 to 10 mph winds and 4-foot seas, he said.
Klingenberg said the Coast Guard’s motorized lifeboat crew found the three fishermen in the life raft and took them to the pier at LaPush, where Station Quillayute River is located.
The three crew members from the life raft were reported to be in good condition.
The sinking occurred in the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, and the state Department of Ecology was notified by the Coast Guard because the Sea Beast can reportedly carry up to 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel.
No pollution from the sunken vessel was reported Sunday, and the Sea Beast was not thought to be a hazard to navigation.
Anyone with information about the sinking of the Sea Beast is asked to call the Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound command center on VHF-FM radio Channel 16 or by phoning 206-217-6001.