PORT ANGELES — One of two people aboard the 43-foot fishing vessel Evening that left Westport Marina on Oct. 12 was found alive Thursday morning by Good Samaritans after some two weeks on a life raft.
The life raft was found 45 miles west of Tofino on Vancouver Island and then transported to shore by the Canadian Coast Guard vessel Cape Ann.
The unidentified man was taken to a Tofino hospital. His condition was not available.
The whereabouts of his companion were unknown on Friday.
The Good Samaritans, who were aboard the Canadian fishing vessel Ocean Sunset, spotted the conical orange life raft drifting far offshore of Torfino, pulled him into their fishing boat and eventually retrieved the life raft as well, said Petty Officer 2nd Class Steve Strohmaier, U.S. Coast Guard public affairs specialist.
The man told his rescuers that he caught a salmon to eat but the U.S. Coast Guard hasn’t been able to confirm that, he said.
“We’re still trying to figure out what happened to the fishing boat,” Strohmaier said. “That’s part of the investigation. We are working with him to figure it out.
“Hopefully, we’ll get some sort of good outcome,” he continued. “We are working with our partners here and up there.”
The life raft was found 45 miles west of Tofino on Vancouver Island. (graphic provided by U.S. Coast Guard)
The boat had been due back Oct. 15. The daughter of one of the men, who was from out of state, reported him missing on Sunday and the U.S. Coast Guard began searching for the vessel. The Coast Guard called off the search around sunset, about 7 p.m. Wednesday, due to life and safety concerns, Strohmaier said.
“The biggest concern is the safety of our crew,” he said. “We had no idea where they were. The initial search area stretched in a sort of elongated triangle from Newport (Oregon) to Torfino (Vancouver Island), which actually is where he ended up being found.”
Strohmaier said two flight crews came down from Alaska and searched an area of almost 14,000 square miles for eight hours using C-130s. Those have a larger range than Coast Guard helicopters, including infrared capabilities, plus VHF radio to communicate with distressed mariners, he said.
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Reporter Brian Gawley can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at brian.gawley@peninsuladailynews.com.
