Coast Guard: Two bodies found, belived to be connected to capsized fishing boat in Alaska
Dec 12, 2024, 7:00 AM | Updated: 7:11 am
A Coast Guard helicopter helps the cutter Ironwood offload equipment to Eldred Rock Lighthouse in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo: Smith Collection, Getty Images)
(Photo: Smith Collection, Getty Images)
Two bodies have been recovered near Juneau, Alaska, which are believed to be the remains of missing crew members after their fishing boat reportedly capsized by Couverden Point, Alaska.
The U.S. Coast Guard reported it had suspended its search for five people on Dec. 4, three days after the vessel reportedly sank.
In a statement, the military branch said crews searched for nearly 24 hours, covering more than 108 square nautical miles.
“We stand in sorrow and solidarity with the friends and family of the people we were not able to find over the past 24 hours,” Chief Warrant Officer James Koon, a search and rescue mission coordinator at Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska, said, according to the statement. “I am deeply grateful for the swiftness of our crews and other search assets who came together to amplify our efforts and completely saturate our search areas. Our collective hearts are with the friends and families of the who are experiencing the effects from this loss.”
The boat, the Wind Walker, was a 50-foot seiner fishing vessel that maintained a five-person crew. Michael Brown, Travis Kapp, Jacob Hannah, Alex Ireland and Emilio Celaya-Talamanter were the crew members aboard.
More capsizing vessels: Guide boat captain missing after vessel capsizes on Columbia River
What happened to the Wind Walker
The Wind Walker vessel sent out a Mayday call at around 12:10 a.m. Dec. 1, reporting they were overturning. When the Coast Guard attempted to contact the boat after the distress signal, the ship and its passengers never responded.
A radio beacon alert that the Coast Guard received indicated the boat was last sailing just south of Point Couverden in the Icy Strait, southwest of Juneau.
That alert came from an emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) device, which automatically releases a radio beacon when the cabin of a boat, where the EPIRB device is located, is submerged in water.
“Sector Southeast Alaska watchstanders issued an urgent marine information broadcast and directed the launch of an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Coast Guard Air Station Sitka and a 45-foot Response Boat-Medium crew from Coast Guard Station Juneau to search the area,” the U.S. Coast Guard stated in its address regarding its search.
The Coast Guard said responders found seven cold-water immersion suits and two strobe lights afloat in the search area. When searching the area, responders faced heavy snow, winds up to 60 mph and six-foot waves. Part of the region is currently under a winter storm warning.
More on missing vessels: Missing fisherman found alive 2 days after Coast Guard ended search
The Coast Guard also stated previously that social media posts claiming that some of the victims had been found are false.
If anyone has any new information about this situation, they are requested to contact the Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska watchstanders at (907) 463-2980.
Washington man aids in search for capsized boat
Seattle native Glenn Jahnke aided in the search for the missing vessel. He is serving as a mate aboard the Pacific Warrior tug boat that is hauling a barge from Seattle to Kodiak Island, Alaska, KIRO 7 reported.
He said he was 12 miles from the Wind Walker when the mayday signal was sent out.
“It was a very distressed voice which is normally the case when there’s a mayday,” Jahnke said, according to KIRO 7. “But he gave a mayday, mayday, mayday, said the name of the vessel, but there was no response. Then the Coast Guard replied asking where they were. His voice got more urgent he responded that they rolled on their side, were taking on water, and two people were in the water. Then the Coast Guard asked a question and there was no response after that.”
Jahnke explained his boat’s crew turned toward the call, but the weather slowed them.
“The conditions were really fierce, winds blowing 50 knots and it was just a whiteout, so finding someone or anything was nearly impossible,” Jahnke said, according to KIRO 7.
Editors’ note: This story was originally published on Monday, Dec. 2. It has been updated and republished multiple times since then.
Contributing: KIRO 7
Frank Sumrall is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read his stories here and you can email him here.
