Updated

Updated · Fox Weather · Sep 12

Coast Guard Rescues 15-Year-Old After 3 Days on Capsized Alaska Boat, Recovers 2 Bodies

Updated

Updated · Fox Weather · Sep 12

Coast Guard Rescues 15-Year-Old After 3 Days on Capsized Alaska Boat, Recovers 2 Bodies

Q: What caused the 18-foot fishing boat to overturn, leaving one boy fighting for his life after losing his relatives?

The cause of the 18-foot skiff overturning has not been determined publicly. U.S. Coast Guard officials said they could not speculate on what caused the boat to capsize or exactly when it happened, and reporting indicates no definitive public finding had been released at the time. What is known is that the three relatives had left Savoonga on St. Lawrence Island on Friday for a halibut fishing trip and were expected back early Sunday. The skiff was later found overturned about 4 miles east of St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea, an area widely described in reporting as rough, frigid and capable of turning treacherous quickly. Search efforts were also delayed by bad weather and poor visibility, which underscores the difficult conditions in the area, but those conditions have not been officially identified as the direct cause of the capsize. Family members said the survivor’s older brother, who was the boat’s captain, became trapped under the overturned boat, and a cousin survived for a time before slipping away into the water. The 15-year-old survivor remained on the upturned hull for days with hypothermia until he was rescued. In short, the capsize remains unexplained publicly, though it occurred in severe Bering Sea conditions during a small-boat fishing trip.

3 articles · Updated · Fox Weather · Sep 12

A 15-year-old was pulled Monday from the top of an overturned 18-foot fishing boat off St. Lawrence Island after surviving three days in frigid waters.
A Coast Guard plane spotted him around 10:30 a.m. local time and guided a nearby Good Samaritan vessel to the scene after Alaska State Troopers reported the boat overdue.
NOAA data showed water temperatures in the 40s, and the teen was suffering hypothermia when rescuers brought him aboard.
The Coast Guard also recovered two bodies from the capsized vessel; all three had left Savoonga on Sept. 4 and were taken to Nome.
The rescue unfolded near the U.S.-Russia maritime border, underscoring the risks small fishing crews face in remote Arctic waters.