PROTECTION ISLAND — Three boaters were rescued by a good Samaritan vessel Monday afternoon after the 40-foot boat they were on caught fire and sank north of Protection Island, a U.S. Coast Guard official said.
The boaters, whose names were not available Tuesday, donned survival suits, got in the water and were picked up by the crew of another vessel, Coast Guard officials said.
They were transferred to a Coast Guard Air Station/Sector Field Port Angeles rescue boat and taken to Port Hudson Marina in Port Townsend, according to the Coast Guard 13th District Pacific Northwest Twitter feed.
“There were no reported medical concerns,” said Chief Petty Officer David Mosley, a Coast Guard 13th District spokesman, in a telephone interview.
An MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from the Port Angeles Coast Guard station flew over the burning vessel and reported no visible sheen, Mosley said.
There were no preliminary indications of what started the fire, Mosley said.
Mosley said the rescue shows how members of the boating community look out for each other’s safety on the water.
“It just highlights how tight-knit the boating community is,” Mosley said.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsula dailynews.com.
