Tag Archives: near Willapa Bay
Community determined to find missing fisherman
More than one week has lapsed since the fishing vessel Ethel May capsized near Willapa Bay and left one crew member missing on Feb. 5, but the man still hasn’t been found despite a growing effort to do so by the community and Pacific County officials. The search is for Bryson Fitch, 25, crab fisherman, husband, and father of three young children. An outpouring of support for the family of Fitch, and for the effort to find him, has swept the community since the F/V Ethel May capsized. “There is a huge community support and volunteers all over the county,” said Pacific County Sheriff Daniel Garcia on Friday in an interview. “There are some combing the beaches on foot, there are some flying drones, there are some who have their personal boats that are searching areas and coastlines.” Photos, >click to read< 14:55
County, community continues search for missing fisherman
After the U.S. Coast Guard suspended the official search for the missing fisherman from the Ethel May, a fishing vessel that capsized Sunday evening, local agencies and community members continued to scour Willapa Bay for signs of the lost man. On Facebook Tuesday morning, Pacific County Sheriff’s Office said it was searching for a man named Bryson Fitch. Fitch, 25, a longtime fisherman, husband and father of three young children, remained missing after the 46-foot crab boat Ethel May sank in heavy seas near Willapa Bay Sunday night. An extended search by the Coast Guard and state and local agencies was suspended Monday evening. “Please don’t stop searching. He is out there,” McKenzie Salas, Fitch’s wife, wrote on Facebook. “He is a fighter. Please keep looking. We need to bring him home. Anyone and everyone please.” >click to read< 12:34
If You Eat Dungeness Crab, Please Help This Family (or even if you don’t, but can help)
Sunday, February 5th was another day in the long life of the F/V Ethel May, a wooden 46-foot crabber built in 1948 in South Bend, Washington, but it was to be her last. Crews from U.S. Coast Guard Station Grays Harbor and Air Station Astoria responded to the sinking after an emergency beacon was activated and the wife of one of the men called 911 to report an emergency onboard. An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter from the air station was able to rescue two crewmen from a life raft at about 8:10 p.m. Unfortunately, the Ethel May had a crew of three, so one did not come home, and the official search was called off at 5:30pm Monday after almost a day of looking methodically. The name of the missing fisherman is Bryson Fitch, and he leaves behind a wife and three young children (aged 6, 4 and 4 months). >click to read< 10:03
‘We need help bringing him home:’ Family remains hopeful as search for missing crabber continues
After a crabbing boat with a three-man crew sank near Willapa Bay Sunday night, the U.S. Coast Guard has suspended its search for the one man who remains missing, but his family won’t give up hope. The Coast Guard rescued two of the three men, but did not find 24-year-old Bryson Fitch, a father of three. The Coast Guard on Twitter posted a video and said a helicopter crew from Astoria, Oregon, hoisted two people from a life raft into the helicopter during rough weather and large waves. It was then that Fitch’s family got the call no one wants to hear. >click to read< 07:43
UPDATED: Search Suspended. Coast Guard, partner agencies save 2, search for missing man near Willapa Bay entrance
The Coast Guard and other agencies are searching for a missing man who was aboard a vessel in distress Sunday off the coast of Washington near the Willapa Bay entrance. Watchstanders at the Thirteenth Coast Guard District in Seattle received an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon transmission Sunday at approximately 7:30 p.m. from the 46-foot crabbing vessel Ethel May near the Willapa Bay Entrance. Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River in Warrenton, Oregon, were notified that the wife of one of the men aboard the vessel called 911 to report an emergency aboard the vessel. Video, >click to read< 18:50
Updated: Search for Missing Fisherman Suspended – The U.S. Coast Guard and partner agencies suspended search efforts at 5:30 p.m. Monday evening for a missing man in Willapa Bay, Washington. Rescue crews completed 18 different search patterns, covering 290 sq. miles during over 15-hours of searching. >click to read< 13:51
Coast Guard completes 3 rescues during busy crab season opener
Station Cape Disappointment, along with Station Grays Harbor, launched 47-foot Motor Lifeboat [MLB] rescue crews at 7:30 a.m. for a fishing vessel taking on water near Willapa Bay. A Coast Guard helicopter eventually hoisted three individuals and their dog off their capsized vessel. The crew was then diverted at 9:15 a.m., south in the vicinity of Gearhart, Ore., to assist another fishing vessel with an injured crewmember. Simultaneously, a separate MLB rescue crew was assisting the crew of a 66-foot fishing vessel off the coast of Long Beach, Wash. The initial distress call came in at 9:30 a.m., stating a vessel with five people aboard was disabled and drifting to shore, dragging its anchor. In 16 to 18-foot seas,,, >Video, click to read< 21:49
