All 46 crew rescued after fishing vessel sinks off Alaskan coast: Coast Guard

[July 27, 2016]    (Reuters) - The 46-member crew of a fishing vessel that sank more than 600 miles off the coast of Alaska in the Bering Sea on Tuesday had to be rescued by boats in the area and taken to a nearby island, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

The crew of Alaska Juris issued a distress alert to the Coast Guard and put on survival suits before leaving their ship at about 11:30 a.m. Alaska time near Kiska Island, about 690 miles (1,100 km) west of Dutch Harbor, Alaska, the U.S. Coast Guard said in a statement.

The Coast Guard said it issued an urgent call to ships in the area, and four vessels diverted from their routes to help.

All 46 crewmembers were rescued and taken to the Aleutian Island of Adak in Alaska.

The Coast Guard deployed a Cutter Midgett and an Air Station Kodiak Hercules airplane to the site of the sinking ship and two Air Station Kodiak Jayhawk helicopters to Adak, the Coast Guard said.

No injuries were reported and the incident was under investigation, the Coast Guard said.

(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

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