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Forty-two people abandoned ship Wednesday after a 258-foot U.S. flagged fishing vessel caught fire about 1,800 miles south of Hawaii, according to a report received by the Coast Guard.
The ship’s owner, American Eagle Fishing LLC, notified officials at 8:38 a.m. of a fire aboard the vessel. The Coast Guard launched an airplane to the scene from Air Station Barbers Point.
The American Eagle’s crew members abandoned ship at 10 a.m. then climbed into two life rafts, three work boats and a skiff, the Coast Guard said.
Also, Fong Seong 888, a Tuvalu-flagged oil tanker, responded to the scene.
According to the Coast Guard, when smoke from fire dissipated the fishing vessel’s captain again boarded the disabled ship with eight crew members to extinguish the fire. The captain later reported the fire extinguished and the vessel to be in stable condition. The remaining 33 crew members were recovered from life rafts, work boats and skiff.
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