CLALLAM COUNTY — The U.S. Coast Guard, Puget Sound Sector rescued two from a life raft Tuesday after a fire broke out on their commercial boat off the coast of the Makah Reservation.
Sector Command Center of the Coast Guard received a call from a boat about 3 nautical miles from Cape Flattery reporting a fire on board.
Five miles off Tatoosh Island, near the Makah Tribal Reservation, the TARKA II reported an emergency before abandoning the boat and getting onto a life raft.
A Motor Lifeboat from Coast Guard Station Neah Bay rescued the two people in the raft and brought them back to shore.
On Wednesday morning, the Coast Guard along with tribal partners returned to the area and confirmed that the TARKA II fire was extinguished.
Coast Guard officials say there is no indication that any of the fuel has spilled into the ocean and with the assistance of the State Department of Ecology, they are continuing to monitor for spills.
The owner is working with his insurance company to get the boat back.
In the meantime, nearby boats are being warned that the TARKA II is afloat and adrift in the sea.