BELLINGHAM — A helicopter from Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles assisted in the search for three people after their 12-foot boat capsized about a half-mile northwest of Guemes Island.
The crew of a 45-foot response boat-medium from Coast Guard Bellingham rescued two men and one woman at about 2 a.m. Friday from the water off North Beach and confirmed they were pulling crab pots when their boat capsized, the Coast Guard said in a press release.
The Coast Guard rescue crew took the three survivors to Cap Sante Marina in Anacortes where emergency medical services personnel were waiting to conduct medical evaluations.
Officials from Skagit County dispatch contacted Coast Guard watchstanders at 10:22 p.m. Thursday to relay that a Good Samaritan called from his residence on Guemes Island’s water edge and reported hearing voices shouting.
He said he saw no boats or lights in the water, but could hear both male and female voices shouting “where are you?” and “don’t give up, I’m right here.”
He guessed the shouts were distress calls hailing from the water in the direction of Vendovi Island.
Both the Bellingham boat and the Port Angeles helicopter were launched to search for people in the water.
None of the three people were wearing life jackets, the Coast Guard said.
The most recent studies indicate 86 percent of drowning victims in 2019 were not wearing life jackets, and most drowning victims are reportedly good swimmers, the Coast Guard said.
