Updated: 11:33 a.m.Â
Two people are missing after a commercial fishing vessel sank near Unalaska Tuesday night, forcing crew members to abandon ship.
Around 10 p.m., the U.S. Coast Guard received reports that the 117-foot Exito was taking on water north of Unalaska Bay.
Petty Officer Meredith Manning said Air Station Kodiak sent a rescue helicopter crew to respond, while four vessels nearby volunteered to help.
“One of the Good Samaritan vessels on-scene located three of the five crew members from the Exito and were able to take them onboard,” Manning said. “They’re transporting them to Dutch Harbor.”
Meanwhile, the helicopter crew and remaining volunteer ships are still searching the area for the two missing crew members. The vessel ultimately sank four nautical miles north of Priest Rock, according to officials with the Marine Safety Detachment Unit in Dutch Harbor.
Manning said it’s still unclear why the Exito began taking on water.
Original Story
Two people are missing after a boat sank near the mouth of Unalaska Bay.
The M/VÂ Exito sank four nautical miles north of Priest Rock, according to Lt. Andres Ayure of the U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment Unit in Dutch Harbor.
Ayure said it’s not clear yet why the vessel sunk or when exactly it went down.
Of the five people on-board, he said three were rescued by the M/V Afognak Strait. Three boats are still searching for the two people missing.
Laura Kraegel covers Unalaska and the Aleutian Islands for KUCB . Originally from Chicago, she first came to Alaska to work at KNOM, reporting on Nome and the Bering Strait Region. (laura@kucb.org / 907.581.6700)
