Coast Guard helicopter

The U.S. Coast Guard in Alaska planned to search through the night for a 98-foot fishing boat with six people aboard missing in the Bering Sea. (file photo)

(U.S. Coast Guard)

JUNEAU, Alaska -- The U.S. Coast Guard in Alaska planned to search through the night for a 98-foot fishing boat with six people aboard missing in the Bering Sea, where 30-mph winds whipped up five- to eight-foot seas.

A Coast Guard news release said an electronic locating device was recovered Saturday in "a debris field containing buoys, a life ring from fishing vessel Destination and an oil sheen." Chief Petty Officer Joshua Ryan said searchers are "hoping for the best."

Three Coast Guard helicopters as well as Good Samaritan boats tried to locate the Seattle-based vessel after a radio beacon alert sounded two miles northwest of St. George. A search party formed by locals on the small island patrolled the shoreline for signs of the crew.

Petty Officer Third Class Lauren Steenson said the 378-foot cutter Morgenthau en route from Dutch Harbor was expected to arrive in the search zone Sunday morning.

-- The Associated Press