Newport fisherman and crew member from Depoe Bay perish when boat sinks Friday

FLORENCE – A well-known commercial fisherman from Newport is missing and presumed drowned and his lone crew member is dead after his White Swan III fishing vessel sank late Friday 35 miles west of Florence.

Mike Morgan, 68, who was a well-known tuna and salmon fisherman and charter captain, died in the accident. A memorial service is 1 p.m. Friday at the Fisherman’s Memorial Sanctuary in Yaquina Bay State Park.

Coast Guard crews recovered the body of the White Swan III’s crew member during the first hours of its search early Saturday. On Thursday the Lane County medical examiner identified her as Billie Jo Hooton, 39, of Depoe Bay.

The Coast Guard announced early Sunday it had suspended its search, 24 hours after it got Morgan’s mayday call.

“The decision to suspend an active search and rescue case is never easy, and it’s only made after careful consideration of myriad factors,” Scott Giard, Coast Guard Search and Rescue Program Manager, said in a news release. “Our thoughts and condolences are with the families throughout this unimaginably challenging time.”

KEZI-TV in Eugene said a family member told it that Morgan had been fishing for 50 years and for the past 15 years had sold tuna and salmon off the docks in Newport.

Helicopters and motorboat crews searched a 232-square-mile area for Morgan, according to Chief Petty Officer William Colclough of the Coast Guard’s office in Seattle. The Coast Guard can resume the search if it receives credible information that Morgan has been located, he said.

The 32-foot black-and-white fishing vessel was reported sinking in the north end of the Heceta Banks fishing area, about 35 miles offshore of Florence.

A rescue helicopter crew from Newport spotted a debris field from the boat and a life raft when they arrived where an emergency beacon had been activated, but had to return to base because of heavy fog and low visibility.

A motor lifeboat crew from Florence found a debris field and recovered the body of the female crew member.

Also involved in the search were helicopter crews from Newport, North Bend, Astoria, a motor lifeboat from Winchester Bay, the Cutter Orcas from Coos Bay.