SitNews - Stories in the News - Ketchikan, Alaska

 

CAUSE OF KEPALA BOAT FIRE IN PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND INVESTIGATED

 

September 12, 2007
Wednesday PM


(SitNews) - The Coast Guard is investigating the cause of a boat fire aboard the 50-foot fishing vessel Kepala that occurred Tuesday near Black Point at the northern entrance to the Tititlek Narrows in Prince William Sound. No injuries have been reported and no pollution has been observed.


jpg KEPALA BOAT FIRE

The Coast Guard is investigating the cause of a boat fire aboard the 50-foot Kodiak-based fishing vessel Kepala. The vessel Sound Pacer notified the Coast Guard of the fire around 1 p.m. Sept. 11, 2007. The three crew on board abandoned ship into their life raft. They were recovered by the fishing vessel Tri-K, in the Tititlek Narrows area and taken to Cordova. The vessel burned to the waterline and drifted to shore nearby. The Coast Guard is currently discussing salvage options with the owner.
Official Coast Guard courtesy of Air Station Kodiak


The nearby Good Samaritan vessel Sound Pacer notified the Coast Guard that the Kepala was on fire and Coast Guard crews were dispatched to respond around 1 p.m. Tuesday. The three personnel on board deployed their life raft and abandoned ship. They were recovered by the Good Samaritan fishing vessel Tri-K that was in the area and taken to Cordova.


jpg Kepala

The 50-foot Kodiak-based fishing vessel Kepala burned to the waterline and drifted to shore near Black Point in the Tititlek Narrows area Sept. 11, 2007. No injuries or pollution have been reported. The Coast Guard is currently discussing salvage options with the owner.
Official Coast Guard courtesy of MK2 Angela Roman, MSU Valdez)

The vessel burned to the waterline and drifted to shore near where it caught fire. The Coast Guard is currently discussing salvage options with the owner. An overflight by a Coast Guard helicopter personnel and observations by Marine Safety Unit Valdez personnel aboard a Station Valdez small boat on Wednesday revealed that the vessel's hull is still intact and aground on the beach.

Again no pollution was observed. The Kepala's homeport is listed with the State of Alaska as Kodiak. The Sound Pacer is an 82-foot fishing vessel out of Cordova. The Tri-K is a 51-foot vessel also out of Cordova.

 

Source of News & Photos:

United States Coast Guard
www.uscg.mil

 

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Ketchikan, Alaska