DUNGENESS — A 30-year-old man is dead and his 65-year-old father was missing after the small boat in which they were crabbing capsized during Sunday’s sudden storm.
Winds of up to 50 mph churned four-foot seas in Dungeness Bay when the 13-foot boat flipped Sunday afternoon.
After family members reported the pair missing Sunday evening, Steve Wasankari Jr. was pulled from the dark, chilly waters by helicopter rescuers and later was pronounced dead at Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles.
His father, Steve Wasankari Sr., who is due to retire in May as Sequim-area supervisor of the Clallam County Road Department, was still missing Monday night.
The Coast Guard suspended a 22-hour search for him at 6:20 p.m. Monday.
The rest of this story, plus testimonials about the Wasankaris and a recollection of the 1990 storm that killed six boaters, appears in today’s Peninsula Daily News. Click on “Subscribe” to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.