Alaska News

Fishermen rescued by Coast Guard after vessel hit rocks

Five fishermen were rescued early Thursday morning by a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter after their 58-foot vessel hit a rock and started taking on water, according to a statement from the Coast Guard.

When water started entering the ship, the fishermen threw on survival suits, boarded the life raft and abandoned the Kodiak Isle, their 58-foot ship. They also notified the Western Alaska Coast Guard Unit, which sent out an urgent marine information broadcast. The fishermen drifted ashore on Sitkinak Island, an uninhabited island just south of Kodiak Island.

Guard crew aboard a MJ-60 Jayhawk helicopter arrived around 2 a.m., according to Petty Officer 1st Class Lauren Brady. The fishermen were equipped with flares and an emergency location beacon, helping rescuers quickly spot them.

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They were hoisted aboard the helicopter and transported to Kodiak. No one was injured, Brady said.

Guard personnel were scheduled to return later Thursday to assess the vessel's condition and to determine whether it posed any pollution concerns, Petty Officer 1st Class David Mosley told Alaska Dispatch.

The Kodiak Isle was reportedly carrying around 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel when it hit the rocks; as of 2:30 a.m., the ship was still afloat.

Read more, here.

Craig Medred

Craig Medred is a former writer for the Anchorage Daily News, Alaska Dispatch and Alaska Dispatch News. He left the ADN in 2015.

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