Alaska News

Man goes overboard from Anchorage-bound tanker in North Pacific

A Coast Guard called off its search Monday afternoon for a 22-year-old man reported to have fallen overboard from a 587-foot tanker Sunday roughly 110 miles south of Sand Point.

The ship's master notified District 17 command center watchstanders that the seaman was missing at 2:17 p.m. Sunday, according to a Coast Guard statement.  The master said they noticed the man was missing around 1:25 p.m.

The ship master sounded a general emergency alarm, searched the vessel and then turned the tanker around to follow his previous track.

The vessel, identified as the Challenge Prelude, is listed in an online tracker as a Hong Kong-registered oil products tanker bound for Anchorage from Japan.

Crews in a Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter and HC-130 Hercules began searching for the missing man Sunday.

Along with the Challenger Prelude, rescue teams searched 673 miles for a combined 14 hours, according to the Coast Guard.

The weather at the location in the North Pacific Ocean was 9 mph winds, 3-foot seas and 39-degree water, the Coast Guard said late Sunday.

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A search with night-vision goggles was called off Sunday evening due to low ceiling and darkness, Coast Guard spokeswoman Petty Officer Lauren Dean said Monday morning.

Correction: This story has been updated to reflect the U.S. Coast Guard's most current release. An earlier version of this story said that the man was 23, not 22. He was reported to have fallen overboard about 110 miles from Sand Point, not 130 miles. He was reported missing at 2:17 p.m., not 1:25 p.m.

Zaz Hollander

Zaz Hollander is a veteran journalist based in the Mat-Su and is currently an ADN local news editor and reporter. She covers breaking news, the Mat-Su region, aviation and general assignments. Contact her at zhollander@adn.com.

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