Missing sailboat captain found dead near Blakely Island

Published 8:57 pm Sunday, November 13, 2011

BLAKELY ISLAND — A missing Bellingham sailboat captain has been found dead at the bottom of the harbor near Blakely Island in the San Juans.

KOMO-TV reported that the missing captain, Donald Mierzeski, had taken his 35-foot sailboat to the San Juans for a racing event on Saturday.

He moored the boat in the marina at Blakely Island, and was last seen walking on the dock back toward the boat at about 12:30 a.m. Saturday.

Deputies searched the area after he was reported missing on Saturday morning, but found nothing.

A dive team was then called in, which later found Mierzeski’s body on the bottom under several feet of water in the marina near his sailboat.

Deputies are investigating the circumstances leading up to his death.