An Alaska teenager who spent nearly two days clinging to an overturned fishing skiff told rescuers that his cousin disappeared during the night and that his older brother was still beneath the boat after all three were thrown into the icy Bering Sea, rescuers and relatives said.
Derek Parker Aghnaanga, 15, was found Monday morning on the capsized skiff about four miles east of St. Lawrence Island. He, his 35-year-old brother, Sidney Kulowiyi, and their cousin had vanished during a fishing trip.
“Through the teeth chattering, he had mentioned that his brother was still under the skiff,” Adam White, captain of the fishing vessel Northwest Explorer, told Anchorage television station KTUU-TV. “And then he said that, in the previous night, before our rescue, that his cousin had slipped away.”
According to a GoFundMe page organized by relatives, Aghnaanga tried to hold on to his brother and cousin after they died, before their bodies were recovered.
This image taken from video provided by Carlos Alexis Escartin shows a teenager being rescued by a fishing vessel Monday, Sept. 7, 2026, in the Bering Sea near St. Lawrence Island, Alaska. (Carlos Alexis Escartin via AP)
A U.S. Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules crew from Air Station Kodiak located Aghnaanga on top of the overturned vessel. The aircrew dropped a survival raft and other equipment, then fired flares to help guide the Northwest Explorer to his position.
The Northwest Explorer’s crew brought Aghnaanga aboard and recovered the bodies of Kulowiyi and the teenager’s cousin.
Aghnaanga showed signs of hypothermia when rescuers reached him. Crew members wrapped him in blankets and applied hot packs to raise his body temperature while the vessel carried him to Nome.
A 15-year-old survivor sits atop a capsized vessel while being towed to safety during a rescue operation off St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, U.S., September 7, 2026, in this screen grab from a handout video obtained on September 12, 2026. (Carlos Alexis Escartin/Handout via REUTERS)
The three left the remote Alaska Native village of Savoonga on Friday for a fishing trip and were expected to return early Sunday. Relatives reported them missing Sunday night, launching a search involving the Coast Guard, Alaska State Troopers and other state and local agencies.
Colleen Walker, an aunt of the brothers, described Kulowiyi as a humble commercial fishing captain and a provider for Savoonga, a village of about 800 people where halibut fishing remains central to community life.
“We all cried and jumped for joy when the captain announced on the radio, ‘We found a kid, he’s alive, he’s alive,’” Walker told The Associated Press as relatives listened to the rescue operation.
The U.S. Coast Guard rescued a 15-year-old Alaska boy after he spent nearly three days in the frigid Bering Sea. A stock image of a boat in the Bering Sea is seen above. (iStock)
Kulowiyi left behind children, according to the family fundraiser, which had raised more than $42,000 toward a $45,000 goal as of Monday morning.
“Our hearts go out to the families, friends, and communities affected by the tragic loss of these two mariners,” Rear Adm. Bob Little, commander of the Coast Guard Arctic District, said in a statement.
The Coast Guard Arctic District coordinated the search with the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center, the Alaska Air National Guard’s 176th Wing, Alaska State Troopers and local authorities in Savoonga.
Neither the Coast Guard nor Alaska State Troopers have said what caused the skiff to capsize.
