A helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Sitka carries out training in Juneau, Alaska, June 26, 2018. (Petty Officer 1st Class Jon-Paul Rios | U.S. Coast Guard)

A helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Sitka carries out training in Juneau, Alaska, June 26, 2018. (Petty Officer 1st Class Jon-Paul Rios | U.S. Coast Guard)

Kayaker reported missing near Sitka

The missing man’s kayak was found empty and overturned.

The Coast Guard is searching for a kayaker reported missing near Sitka on Sunday.

Kale Pastel, 36, was reported missing before noon on Sunday after failing to return from an early-morning kayak trip to Birdsnest Bay, said Petty Officer 2nd Class Melissa McKenzie, a public affairs specialist, in a phone interview.

The Coast Guard deployed an MH-60 Jayhawk to search for Pastel. Around 1:15 p.m. on Sunday, the aircrew located a kayak on Cannon Island. Someone had located the kayak overturned in the Eastern Channel earlier that morning before towing it to the island, according to the press release.

McKenzie said the search for Pastel is ongoing as of Monday morning.

Pastel was last seen wearing blue pants and a black hoodie. He’s described as being 6 feet 4 inches, and weighing 200 pounds. Anyone with information is asked to contact Sector Juneau at (907)463-2980.

• Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at 757-621-1197 or mlockett@juneauempire.com.

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