2 crabbers rescued, 1 missing after fishing boat breaks apart off Washington coast
The Coast Guard in Seattle received an emergency distress signal from the 46-foot crabbing vessel Ethel May around 7:30 p.m. Sunday while it was located just off the southern Washington coast near the Willapa Bay entrance.
Coast Guard rescues 2 from sunken crab boat off Washington coast.
Two men were plucked from a life raft off the Washington Coast after their crab boat sank Sunday evening, but a third crew member remains missing. (Video: U.S. Coast Guard)
ASTORIA, Ore. – Two crabbers were rescued Sunday after their fishing boat sank off the Washington coast, but a third remains missing, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard in Seattle received an emergency distress signal from the 46-foot crabbing vessel Ethel May about 7:30 p.m. local time while it was located just off the southern Washington coast near the Willapa Bay entrance. Around the same time, the Coast Guard station in Warrenton, Oregon, was notified that the wife of one of the crew members had just called 911 to report an emergency on board the Ethel May.
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A rescue helicopter headed to the scene and spotted two men inside a life raft at 8:10 p.m. The two were safely hoisted on board, where they reported a third crew member was still missing.
A Coast Guard rescue crew from Air Station Astoria safely hoists two men into an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter near Willapa Bay, Washington, Feb. 5, 2023.
(U.S. Coast Guard / FOX Weather)
The chopper brought the two men to a waiting ambulance on the shore, where they were taken to a local hospital for further evaluation and treatment for hypothermia.
The helicopter and other Coast Guard boats returned to the scene and conducted a 15-hour search well into Monday afternoon, covering 290 square miles, but came up empty. They did spot the debris floating inside Willapa Bay and along the Pacific shoreline, indicating the vessel had broken apart, Coast Guard officials said.
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"Suspending search efforts is a tough decision that we never take lightly," Lt. Cmdr. Colin Fogarty, the search and rescue mission coordinator for Coast Guard Sector Columbia River, said in a news release. "The Coast Guard continues to speak with the family affected by this incident."
The cause of the boat's demise is unknown. Nearby weather stations reported overcast skies and winds gusting to 25 mph during the mayday call, with seas predicted at 8-10 feet that evening.