A fishing charter boat found partially submerged off a southeast Alaskan island last May likely capsized after its well deck became flooded in rough seas, according to the U.S. Coast Guard, which investigated the accident that killed five people, including two vacationing sisters and their partners.
More than 100 people attended a town hall-style presentation on the Coast Guard’s findings in Sitka last week, the Daily Sitka Sentinel reported.
Investigators said the 30-foot-long boat, the Awakin, had limited options for survival when it capsized May 28, 2023. The vessel did not need to have an emergency raft aboard. Coast Guard Chief Investigator Adm. Nate Menefee said the boat, which was found off Low Island, about 10 miles west of Sitka, had only minimal equipment for pumping water out of the well deck.
Hawaiian couple killed, several missing after fishing boat capsizes in Alaska
“The Awakin accident began when a large swell caused the Awakin’s well deck to suddenly flood,” Menefee said. “This was due to the ship sailing near Roe Island in shallow waters and at low tide, which carried the vessel into dangerous areas and increased the possibility of encountering large swells and breaking waves. This was a major contributing factor to the accident.The ship’s well deck was flooded and its drainage outlets were limited, which would have had a significant impact on the ship’s stability.
Sunset at Inside Passage near Sitka, Alaska, Inside Passage. (Education Images/Universal Images Group, Getty Images)
Menefee said there was some uncertainty about the final minutes of the voyage, adding that the Coast Guard “cannot determine with any certainty the exact cause of the Awakin’s capsizing.” The Coast Guard said there were no witnesses and no distress signals had been received.
At 2:43 p.m. on May 28, the boat’s tracking system recorded its last location just south of Low Island, near a popular fishing spot. One of the passengers, who was trapped in the cabin, tried to make an emergency call five times on his cell phone between 3:01 p.m. and 3:12 p.m., but the call was unsuccessful. A text message recovered from the phone’s draft messages folder said “Call 911,” but it was never sent.
The last photo recovered from the cellphone was taken at 2:43 p.m. and shows a passenger holding a rockfish.
The lodge where the charter departed reported that the boat was delayed around 5:30 p.m. A Coast Guard helicopter departed at 6:55 p.m. and spotted the partially submerged boat shortly thereafter. The Coast Guard aims to have a wait time of less than 30 minutes for helicopters to depart, but it took longer that day due to fuel issues.
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Those killed were charter guide Morgan Robidoux, 32, Brandi Tiau, 56, of Canoga Park, California, and her partner Robert Solis, 61, and Danielle Thiau, 61, of Waipahu, Hawaii. Agkaoli (53 years old) and her husband Maury Agkaoli (57 years old). Autopsies revealed that the cause of death for the four people found was drowning.
