Wreckage of crabber Destination discovered after disappearing in February

NOAA Ship Fairweather captured this sonar image of the F/V Destination, where it rests on the sea floor near St. George Island. (Image courtesy National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
NOAA ship Fairweather captured this sonar image of the F/V Destination, where it rests on the sea floor near St. George Island. (Image courtesy National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)

Wreckage from the F/V Destination has been found off St. George Island.

The boat and its six crew members were fishing for snow crab when they disappeared Feb. 11.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced this morning that two of its research vessels have found and confirmed the location of the Destination.

The two ships used sound to map the sea floor near the crabber’s last known location.

In May, a sweep by the Oscar Dyson narrowed the search, and on July 9, the Fairweather confirmed the presence of the Destination, nearly 250 feet underwater.

In a news release, the U.S. Coast Guard said later this month it will deploy the cutter Healy, a dive team and a remotely operated vehicle to analyze the wreckage.

The results of the search are part of the Coast Guard’s ongoing investigation into the disappearance of the Destination.

It’s considered the worst accident in the Bering Sea crab fleet for more than a decade.

Public hearings on the disappearance are scheduled for August 7-18 at the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building in Seattle.

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