The US Coast Guard has begun investigating a fatal confined space incident that occurred aboard the freight barge Waynehoe approximately 25 miles (40 kilometres) northwest of Ketchikan, Alaska, on Sunday, March 15.
Of the four crewmembers involved in the incident, two are deceased. The other two crewmembers are reported to be in stable condition.
Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska command center in Juneau received a mayday call at 09:14 local time on Sunday that the crew of the tug Chukchi Sea lost contact with four crewmembers inside a confined space aboard the barge Waynehoe, which was moored near Skowl Arm, approximately 25 miles northwest of Ketchikan.
Coast Guard watchstanders directed the launch of a 45-foot (14-metre) response boat-medium (RB-M) crew from Coast Guard Station Ketchikan with members from the South Tongass Volunteer Fire Department aboard to respond to the incident.
While the RB-M was en route, the crew of the tug recovered one deceased crewmember and assisted two others out of the confined space.
To ensure a safe and thorough response, the barge was towed to a pier in Ketchikan. In a coordinated, multi-agency effort, the body of the second deceased crewmember was recovered from the confined space on Tuesday, March 17.
"This is a heartbreaking reminder that confined spaces on vessels can contain extremely dangerous, invisible hazards," said Captain Stanley Fields, Commander of Sector Southeast Alaska. "The coast guard is committed to a thorough investigation to understand what happened and prevent a tragedy like this from occurring again."