Fishermen rescued by helicopter in Prince William Sound

A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter carried three fishermen to safety today after their boat began taking on water in southwestern Prince William Sound, a spokesman says.

The Coast Guard received distress signals from an Evans Island hatchery and from the Homer-based vessel “Ruffian” at around 12:45 a.m. today: The 42-foot boat, which had been fishing for Pacific cod and skate, was in trouble near LaTouche Island.

“They had a large amount of fish on board and they were taking water over the stern,” said Petty Officer 3rd Class Jonathan Lally.

At some point, the Ruffian’s captain intentionally grounded the boat to prevent it from sinking with 200 gallons of diesel fuel on board, the Coast Guard said.

The agency reported 30-knot winds and 3-foot seas on the area this morning.

The Coast Guard launched an MH-60 Jayhawk rescue helicopter at 1:45 a.m. from Kodiak, but bad weather and poor visibility kept it from reaching the vessel. Another helicopter crew tried again at 9:20 a.m., the Coast Guard reported this morning.

At about 11:45 a.m. the helicopter hoisted the three fishermen and carried them to Whittier, where they were dropped off with no apparent injuries, Lally said.

The boat is no longer taking on water. The Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Valdez plans to investigate the incident and salvage the partially-submerged vessel, Lally said. “There’s no reported pollution on scene.”

A good Samaritan vessel planned to offload fish and supplies from the grounded Ruffian.

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