Tag Archives: Air Station Sitka
‘A friend to everybody’: Sitka man killed in bear mauling remembered by colleagues
Tad Fujioka was an avid outdoorsman whose love of fishing led him to trade the engineering field for the commercial trolling one. But Fujioka, whose body was found Wednesday north of Sitka following search and rescue efforts, the victim of a bear mauling, is being remembered less for what he did and more for the type of person he was. “I mean, everybody that knew him, liked him,” said longtime friend and colleague, Norman Pillen, president of Seafood Producers Cooperative (SPC) in Sitka. Fujioka was the board chair for SPC and a big advocate for the commercial fishing industry. He was a strong family man and man of many talents, Pillen said. Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:04
A major fisheries advocate, Sitkan Tad Fujioka found dead in apparent bear mauling
The call that Tad Fujioka was overdue could not have come at a worse time. On the evening of October 29, Sitka and the outer coast of Southeast were being lashed by a windstorm, with some gusts in excess of 50 miles per hour. Fire Chief Craig Warren says Air Station Sitka launched a helicopter, nevertheless, equipped with Forward-Looking-Infrared (FLIR), to search an area about ten miles north of Sitka in Nakwasina Sound. Fujioka was believed to be returning to an area where he had shot a deer on Monday in much better weather and had cached part of the carcass. The shock reverberated quickly around Sitka. Norm Pillen is the President of Seafood Producers Cooperative, where Fujioka was board chair. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:47
Samaritans, U.S.C.G. rescue fishing boat captain from ‘communications dead zone’ near Sitka
A Coast Guard helicopter crew from Air Station Sitka medevaced a man in cardiac distress from a fishing vessel in West Crawfish Inlet on Aug. 19. Watchstanders in Sitka received a call around 1:30 p.m. from the F/V Minke. Crew from the Minke relayed that the 68-year-old captain of another boat, the F/V Lady Cyprus, was experiencing a possible heart attack. West Crawfish Inlet is around 16 miles south of Sitka. Due to the surrounding high terrain, the inlet is considered a “communication dead zone,” and crew from the Lady Cyprus were unable to contact the Coast Guard themselves. >click to read< 14:50
Coast Guard drops dewatering pump to disabled fishing vessel taking on water near Icy Bay, Alaska
The Coast Guard assisted a fishing vessel taking on water and disabled, six miles south of Icy Bay, Alaska, Wednesday. A Coast Guard Air Station Sitka MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew delivered a dewatering pump at about 9 p.m. to the 55-foot fishing vessel Elise Marie that was taking on water. The Elise Marie crew was able to use the pump to keep up with the flooding while they waited for further Coast Guard assistance. Watchstanders in the Sector Juneau Command Center received initial notification requesting assistance from Elise Marie via InReach device at approximately 7 p.m. Watchstanders directed the launch of multiple assets to assist, including a plane, a helicopter, and Coast Guard Cutter John McCormick. >Video, photos, click to read< 18:33
Coast Guard rescues 5 fishermen from life raft near Sitka, Alaska
The Coast Guard rescued five fishermen from a life raft Tuesday after they were forced to abandon their fishing vessel taking on water southeast of Sitka. A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Air Station Sitka hoisted all five people and brought them to Sitka, uninjured. Coast Guard Sector Juneau Command Center watchstanders monitoring Channel 16 heard “Mayday, vessel Masonic going down,” at approximately 2:33 a.m. Video >click to read<19:16
