Unalaska, AK – The American Seafoods Catcher Processor American Dynasty caught on fire Friday night when it was about 50 nautical miles northwest of Cold Bay. Specific details about the cause of the fire and where it started are not yet available, but crew members were able to extinguish it and no one was injured. The Coast Guard Cutter Munroe escorted the 272-foot vessel and its 120 workers back to Unalaska. The company and its insurers are still investigating the incident and the boat will be taken back to Seattle for repairs.

The core crew members were allowed to stay on the vessel once it docked in Unalaska, however 86 members of the processing crew were evacuated and stayed at the Grand Aleutian. Rooms Division manager Dan Young said the hotel was already mostly full and like most emergency incidents, it was unexpected and stressful.

"It's very stressful because when they happen they happen really quick and sometimes we have to imagine the worst. We didn't get a lot of information from the company because they're of course dealing with other things and they just give us the basics," he said. "They started out with 120 people and said they'd be here at midnight. So at that point we were trying to get employees that maybe had the day off to come and help us, people to stay longer that had already been working that day."

They prepared the conference room for the large influx of people by pulling out spare mattresses, prepared bedrolls put aside for emergencies like this, and roll-away beds from the hotel and motel. About 35 people stayed in the Makushin Room. Processors from the conference room will be moved into other rooms as become they become available.

"The facilities can certainly handle the volume," Young said. "It's being prepared both with the basics of the room, or personal hygiene with towels and soap and things of that nature and of course a place to take a shower and rest and relax. It's a coordinated effort in the rooms department and the food and beverage department because we plan in food and beverage for a certain amount of food based on our occupancy and of course the people here in town. And when we have an influx of that many people it can certainly put a strain on some of our resources and our stores here in the hotel."

The food and beverage department quickly thawed out more food, like hamburgers and chicken strips, to feed the large group.

Young said they company will try to fly the processors out on planes on Tuesday and Wednesday, weather permitting. The ship is out of commission for the rest of the season, though some workers will be transferred to other processing vessels.

No other details are available at this time. The American Dynasty is an 8,000 horsepower, 3,480 ton vessel that processes surimi, pollock roe, and fishmeal.