Four Airlifted from Sinking Fishing Vessel in Gulf of Alaska

gCaptain ^ | June 11, 2015 | Mike Schuler

[artichokegrower]

The U.S. Coast Guard on Wednesday rescued four crew of the fishing vessel Kupreanof from the Gulf of Alaska near Lituya Bay, Alaska. The dramatic rescue was caught on film by the Coast Guard aircrew as the vessel sank.

[artichokegrower]

Deadliest Catch

[artichokegrower]

Link to video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9a0Gsg9Pcs#t=92

[centurion316]

This isn’t the season for Red’s or Opies. What were they fishing for?

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

To dee bottom of me Davey Jones locker, aaargh!

[PIF]

Lituya Bay, Alaska home of the largest landfall generated wave in modern history. Unlike subsidence generated tsunamis which form the familiar crested wave, landfall generated waves are standing waves which only break on hitting something taller than them, like a mountain, but will roll over everything smaller than the wave height with out dissipating.

[arbitrary.squid]

Salmon, most likely.

[IronJack]

Kinda small to be a crab boat. And there’s no launcher, coiler, or recovery block. ‘Tisn’t crab they be after, mate.

[dainbramaged]

The Coast Guard knows how to get the job done.
Lots of stories about Lituya Bay, first being the entrance which is narrow, treacherous and best traveled at slack tide. There are range markers on the hillside you have to line up while approaching and it is pucker time. The French explorer La Perouse lost two longboats and 21 men who got too close to the entrance at the wrong time in 1785.
On July 9, 1958 an earthquake triggered a huge landslide which caused a megatsunami that cleared the hillsides of vegetation up 1800 feet above sea level and are still visible today. Of the three fishing boats in the bay at the time, one sank with two killed and the other boats rode it out miraculously. One vessel, the Edri was still in service in the 80's and I knew the owner. He got drunk in Hoonah and started something that caused the village cops to shoot him 4 times and leave him lying on the dock frozen for half a day. He survived and sued, got 5 million or so, IIRC.

[Gator113]

God bless the Coast Guard......

I think that is one area that Obama hasn’t completely screwed up.

When I take my boat out to fish, I love seeing those guys out and about.

[tinamina]

80 foot salmon tender Kupreanof had been out of service for 20 years prior to this trip. Lucky crew. I once cooked on a tender in Alaska so I’m a little able to feel the situation.

[CGASMIA68]

Not many good choices in my life but joining the CG in 68 was one..Are these guys not awesome!!!

[Chuckster]

Kupreanof is (Was) a tender. About 75 or 80 feet IRRC. Homeport here in Petersburg. This type of boat would deliver groceries, ice and fuel to the smaller gillnetters, longliners, purse seiners, trollers and crab boats in outlying anchorages and pick up their catch. The consolidated catch, whatever, would be taken back to Petersburg for processing.

[rockinqsranch]

Update: 6-11-15. In a follow-up interview the skipper of the Kupreanof we learn that the vessel had been actively tendering in Petersburg.

http://www.kcaw.org/2015/06/10/with-seconds-to-spare-coast-guard-rescues-crew-of-kupreanof/