JUNEAU, Alaska — The Coast Guard suspended its active search at sunset Saturday for an overdue boater near Kake, Alaska, pending any further developments.
“We extend our deepest sympathies to Mr. Wilson’s loved ones,” said Cmdr. Raymond Reichl, search and rescue mission coordinator at Sector Juneau. “The decision to suspend an active search is never easy and is only done after exhaustive efforts to find the missing person.”
Coast Guard crews searched nearly 16 hours covering more than 377 square nautical miles.
Involved in the search were:
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Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew from Air Station Sitka
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Coast Guard Cutter Blue Shark
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Alaska State Troopers
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Alaska Wildlife Troopers
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Kake SAR
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Wrangell SAR
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Angoon SAR
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Petersburg SAR
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Tlingit and Haida
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SEADOGS
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Sitka Mountain Rescue
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Juneau Mountain Rescue
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Several good Samaritans from Kake
Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Juneau received a relayed report from the Alaska State Troopers at 8:30 pm., Friday, of an overdue boater aboard a 15-foot Lund.
The Coast Guard utilized a cell phone ping to identify a last known position of approximately 6 miles southwest of Kake near Payne Island.
At approximately 6 a.m. Saturday, Wrangell Search and Rescue (SAR) spotted the overdue Lund near Point Macartney, approximately 13 miles northwest of Kake. Ultimately, the vessel's GPS history was utilized to coordinate search efforts between Kake and Cape Bendel, Frederick Sound, and the southern shoreline of Admiralty Island.
If anyone has new information regarding this case, please call the Sector Juneau command center at 907-463-2980.