Michigan man working on ‘Deadliest Catch’ boat found dead in Alaska after storm
ESCANABA, MI – A Michigan man who had spent nearly a decade working on fishing vessels in Alaska has been found dead.
The Unalaska Department of Public Safety said Tuesday that 28-year-old Jacob Riley Veeser was found in the water along Captain’s Bay Road at 10:27 a.m. on April 5.
Veeser is a native of Escanaba in the Upper Peninsula who has spent the last nine years working on vessels operating in the plentiful but notoriously dangerous Bering Sea, according to the Daily Press.
Unalaska is the main population center in the Aleutian Islands near the end of the Alaska Peninsula.
The U.S. Coast Guard, Unalaska Fire Department and Alaska State Troopers had also been searching for Veeser after crew members of the F/V Lady Alaska reported him missing at 5:32 p.m. on April 4.
Veeser hadn’t been seen since walking down the G1 dock at UniSea, Inc.’s processing facility on Iliuliuk Harbor.
A winter storm was underway when he went missing with travel advisories warning of high winds and blowing snow causing whiteout conditions, snow accumulation and slippery roads.
The F/V Lady Alaska is one of several vessels featured on “Deadliest Catch,” the popular Discovery Channel documentary series featuring the dangers of fishing treacherous Alaskan waters.
Veeser’s next of kin have been notified, officials said.
