Coast Guard Calls Off Search for Fisherman Missing Off Oregon

 

After an extended search, the U.S. Coast Guard has suspended efforts to find a commercial fisherman who went missing from a salmon boat off the coast of Oregon earlier this week.

Fisherman Joel Kawahara, 65, departed Quilcene last week aboard his salmon fishing vessel, Karolee. He was last heard from at 0730 hours on Friday, and for the next few days, his boat maintained a constant speed of about four knots, heading on a southerly course off Oregon.

A friend of Kawahara, Heather Rehtaeh, contacted the Coast Guard to report him missing. The Coast Guard made multiple callouts to the vessel, which was still visible on AIS, but received no response. On Tuesday morning, the service dispatched a C-27 airplane out of Air Station Sacramento to meet the vessel and examine it; the aircrew found no signs of distress aboard the vessel or in its wake, and the Karolee's liferaft was still in its cradle. The Karolee did not respond to the aircrew's hails. 

At this point, the Coast Guard launched a search and rescue operation for a possible man-overboard situation. The service dispatched a helicopter out of Air Station Astoria and a Coast Guard cutter, the Douglas Denman, to join the search. 

The cutter Sea Lion also diverted to intercept the Karolee, which was still non-responsive. Sea Lion arrived alongside Karolee at about 1000 hours Wednesday and carried out a boarding; there was no one onboard, and all safety equipment appeared to be present and accounted for. 

Without further information, distress reports or responses to VHF hails, the Coast Guard decided to suspend the search on Wednesday, after 18 hours of effort and 2,100 square miles covered. 

“Suspending a search for someone is the toughest decision we make in the Coast Guard,” said Cmdr. Chelsey Stroud, search and rescue mission coordinator for the Coast Guard’s Northwest District. “Our crews diligently search hundreds of miles. We are grateful for the numerous Coast Guard crews along the West Coast who assisted in this search. We send our deepest condolences to the family, friends, and loved ones of the missing man.”

Sea Lion's crew took Karolee in tow and delivered the vessel safely to Eureka, California. Its custody was transferred to Station Humboldt Bay.

Heather Rehtaeh, the friend who reported Kawahara missing, said that there had been challenges in working with local Coast Guard stations before the case was elevated to district level. But even if the search had started earlier, the outcome would likely have been the same, she said. "I owe everything to the team that worked to recover Joel's boat and offer us closure," she said in a social media statement, adding that she hopes to see an investigation into comms challenges at local stations.