LAPUSH — The Coast Guard towed a 40-foot fishing vessel and its crew to safety today after it ran aground about 3 miles north of the Quillayute River mouth at LaPush.
The Coast Guard received a mayday call from the four-member crew of the Jayden Ray at 2:20 a.m., after its vessel washed up on rocks and was unable to deploy its anchor, a Coast Guard spokesman said.
An MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Air Station Port Angeles and a 47-foot motor lifeboat crew from Station Quillayute River at LaPush were dispatched. The motor lifeboat crew was able to navigate through the rocks and throw over a towline at approximately 3:30 a.m., after receiving illumination from a spotlight aboard the helicopter.
The motor lifeboat crew took the fishing vessel and its crew members in tow and transferred them back to LaPush where a post search-and-rescue boarding was conducted. The cause of the incident is under investigation, the spokesman said.
