Unalaska, AK – It has been five days since the Coast Guard and the State of Alaska have been able to assess the state of the grounded F/V TerriGail.

The 58-foot longliner went aground near Makushin Bay on Tuesday, and the last Coast Guard helicopter flyover took place on Wednesday. Multiple flyovers have been scheduled to determine the environmental impact of the wreck, but poor weather has prevented any helicopters from taking off. Coast Guard Petty Officer David Mosley says that they are working to get out to the vessel as soon as possible, but that there are certain constraints that are making it difficult to do assessments.

"This time of year, there are only a limited number of Coast Guard assets stationed in the Bering Sea," says Mosley. "We currently have two helicopters forward deployed in St. Paul for search-and-rescue-style missions. We have the Morgenthau that's on patrol in the Bering Sea, and they have a helicopter on board with them. We currently have another one of our MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters in Cold Bay, and we're seeing if that could be made available to do an overflight of the TerriGail. If it's not available, we're also looking at the possibility of using a commercial aircraft that we could hire to do a flyover."

At the time of the grounding, the TerriGail was reportedly carrying 800 gallons of diesel fuel. While no spill has been recorded, the Coast Guard remains vigilant about the potential for a leak.

"We have asked any mariners in the area to keep an eye out for any signs and to report those signs to us," says Mosley. "As far as my knowledge, we have not received any indications that there has been a release of fuel, but we won't get a really good solid picture of the vessel and its condition until we get a flyover out there."

The Coast Guard is now working with the owner, Duane Freeman, on salvage and fuel-removal plans. All five crewmen were successfully rescued on Tuesday.