A boat hit a rock about 50 yards from Coghlan Island Monday night and began taking on water, prompting a search and rescue by the U.S. Coast Guard and private vessels in the area who heard the distress call.
No one was injured in the incident, which was reported to the Coast Guard at about 7 p.m. Monday. There were four people aboard the vessel at the time of the wreck, the captain and three passengers, Coast Guard Petty Officer Jesse Dyals told the Empire on Tuesday morning. The passengers were escorted off the wrecked boat onto a private vessel, and taken back to Don D. Statter Memorial Boat Harbor in Auke Bay.
According to Dyals, the Sector Juneau boat crew arrived on scene at 7:45 p.m. There they transferred a dewatering pump to the aground 22-foot fiberglass vessel. After several attempts at dewatering the vessel, it was determined the rate of flooding was too great to manage according to a release.
When the Coast Guard arrived on scene Monday night, they decided to leave the boat where it was. Taking it off the rock would most likely cause it to sink, Dyals said.
“If we pulled it off (the rock), it could have been worse,” Dyals said.
Petty Officer Breanna Tessier said the people on the boat took appropriate action during the wreck.
“The people aboard the vessel did what they needed to do by calling for help via VHF Channel 16 and wearing their PFDs,” Tessier, an operations specialist and Sector Juneau watchstander, said in the release. “Thanks to the good Samaritan vessels for assisting. When the call for assistance goes out, it’s good to know other mariners will assist those in need.”
The Coast Guard boat crew transferred the vessel owner to Auke Bay Harbor. They are scheduled to develop salvage plans. There were no reports of fuel discharge.
• Contact reporter Gregory Philson at gphilson@juneauempire.com or call at 523-2265. Follow him on Twitter at @GTPhilson.
A Coast Guard Station Juneau Response Boat-Medium crew assists a 22-foot vessel taking on water in Auke Bay Monday evening. (Courtesy Photo | U.S. Coast Guard District 17)