Small pleasure craft rescued near Hoonah

Coast Guard crews from Juneau and Sitka responded to a pleasure craft adrift near Hoonah last night (Wednesday) – the second such incident in Southeast waters this week.

About 8:20 p.m. two men aboard the 24-foot Tlingit Boy II reported on VHF radio that they were disabled near Whitestone Harbor in 40 mile per hour winds and eight-foot seas.

An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from Air Station Sitka and a 45-foot medium response boat from Juneau launched to assist the vessel. Before the response boat could get on scene, the Good Samaritan vessel Vagabond Queen arrived and began towing the Tlingit Boy II back to Hoonah. The Coast Guard helicopter crew remained in the area to assist.

Lieutenant Junior Grade James Dooley says Wednesday’s incident followed the rescue Monday of a man aboard a 22-foot pleasure boat disabled near Kake.

“Just really want to urge all mariners to pay attention to the weather, use really sound judgment before venturing out into this kind of stuff,” Dooley says. “Because, when something goes wrong it can start to go wrong in a hurry.”

Dooley says neither of the men aboard the Tlingit Boy II were injured. The vessel was safely towed by the Vagabond Queen back to Hoonah, about 15 miles north of where it became disabled.

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