The search for a missing commercial crabber and his vessel the Kelli J continued Wednesday in Willapa Harbor, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

There has been no sign of Kevin Soule or his Nahcotta-based vessel since his wife reported he was overdue on a trip to set his crab pots Saturday afternoon.

A boat crew contracted through the vessel owner’s insurance company located a large unknown object in the area of previously sighted pollution and debris in the water of Willapa Bay Tuesday. Global Diving and Salvage personnel have been contracted by the insurance company to dive on and identify the object Wednesday, and assess what actions can be taken for potential salvage.

Around 3:35 p.m. on Saturday, watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River received a report that the operator of the Kelli J was overdue from a fishing trip. The report came from the vessel operator’s wife, who stated he was due to return at 12:30 p.m. that day and confirmed his vehicle was still at a Nahcotta marina with no vessel in sight.

The Coast Guard made radio callouts to contact Soule, but received no response. They then issued an Urgent Marine Information Broadcast and diverted an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew from training to conduct an initial search, which also yielded no results, according to a Coast Guard statement.

The aircrew returned to refuel before relaunching to conduct a two-hour search covering Willapa Bay and the area offshore of the bay entrance. While a 29-foot response boat crew from Coast Guard Station Grays Harbor retraced the vessel track of the Kelli J, a shore party from Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment met with the family at the marina and Pacific County Sheriff’s personnel checked other marinas around Willapa Bay.

At 10:40 p.m. a citizen notified the Coast Guard that they located a sheen and what appeared to be a life ring attached to something submerged in Willapa Bay about three miles northwest of Oysterville. Crab pots potentially from the vessel were also located nearby. Another Jayhawk aircrew arrived on the reported location and lowered a rescue swimmer who recovered the life ring but saw no other sign of the vessel.

Helicopter crews continued to search until 1 a.m. on Sunday, and at 8 a.m. the search by air resumed.

A Clark County dive team arrived at Station Cape Disappointment around midnight and rested until morning, but due to strong currents they were unable to safely conduct dive operations on Sunday. A Pacific County Sheriff’s boat crew located a large unknown object using a side-scan radar about 500 yards east of where the sheen and life ring were found, but was unable to relocate the object after returning the Clark County divers to shore.

The search for Soule was suspended at 12:12 p.m. on Sunday after the morning searches concluded with negative results. The Kelli J reportedly could carry up to 500 gallons of fuel aboard.

Monday concluded with sheriff’s office personnel unsuccessful in locating the vessel and Coast Guardsmen issued a Safety Marine Information Broadcast to warn mariners transiting the area of the missing vessel.

Midday on Tuesday, using side-scan radar, another boat crew contracted by the insurance company located an object resting below 40 feet of water in the same general area as the sheriff’s Sunday find. The latest location is in the same general area as the sheen, life ring and crab pots. No sheen has been reported at the new location.

Further actions depend on results from the planned dive scheduled to be conducted Wednesday.