5 people missing after fishing boat capsizes off Alaska coast in icy water
Officials battled rough conditions Monday as they scoured the cold waters near Alaska in search of multiple people missing after a fishing boat capsized, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
The Coast Guard said the agency was searching for multiple people who were aboard the fishing vessel Wind Walker that overturned off Point Couverden, southwest of Alaska’s capital of Juneau. Based on reports from those familiar with the vessel, the Coast Guard said there were an estimated five people aboard.
"This number has not been confirmed and is subject to change pending new information," the Coast Guard said in a statement.
The agency said watchstanders from its southeast Alaska sector received a mayday call at around 12:10 a.m. local time on Sunday from the roughly 50-foot-long vessel. The vessel's crew reported that the boat was overturning and watchstanders attempted to gather more information but received no response, according to the Coast Guard.
An emergency position-indicating radio beacon that was registered to the vessel was also activated and showed that the distress signal originated just south of Point Couverden in the Icy Strait, the Coast Guard said.
Watchstanders then issued an urgent marine information broadcast, deploying an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Air Station Sitka along with a 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew from Station Juneau to search the area, according to the Coast Guard.
The ferry vessel AMHS also overheard the broadcast and arrived at the scene first, the Coast Guard said. Search crews later discovered seven cold-water immersion suits and two strobe lights in the water.
The Coast Guard said it was searching in rough conditions, according to ABC News and Alaska’s News Source. Weather conditions in the area consisted of heavy snow, winds up to 45 to 60 mph, and 6-foot seas, the Coast Guard said.
Petty Officer John Hightower told Alaska’s News Source that search crews were using Coast Guard Cutter Healy − the largest and most technologically advanced polar icebreaker in the U.S. − as their main search platform.
On Sunday afternoon, the Coast Guard said that it was "aware of reports on social media claiming individuals from this incident have been located."
"At this time, the (Coast Guard) has not confirmed these claims and is continuing search efforts," the agency added.
Point Couverden is located on the southeastern end of Couverden Island, a small island in Haines Borough, Alaska.