A U.S. Coast Guard vessel capsized in the Columbia River near Astoria, dumping four crew members into the river.

The 26-foot vessel came under “a series of heavy wakes” that overtook the bow, according to a news release, sending the ship into an “unrecoverable starboard list” that plunged the crew members into the river.

The crew members were in the river near Pier 39 in Astoria at the time. Emergency beacons alerted officials at the 13th U.S. Coast Guard District Command Center in Seattle that crew members were overboard at 11:39 a.m. It took another 11 minutes until a MH-60 Jayhawk crew from the Coast Guard and a 47-foot agency lifeboat were ordered to respond to the capsized crew members.

Petty Officer Michael Clark, a coast guard spokesman, said the incident remains under investigation.

Folks on the river’s edge also called 911 and saw the crew members in the river. The four crew members were pulled safely out of the water by a Columbia Bar Pilot vessel, those boats that help ships navigate the treacherous Columbia River Bar at the river’s mouth, at 12:09 p.m. The ship responded to the emergency distress signals. The crew members were all reported in good condition after evaluation at a local hospital.

Clark said it’s not clear if air support crews were deployed.

-- Andrew Theen; atheen@oregonian.com; 503-294-4026; @andrewtheen

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