Skiff found on Washington coast was tsunami debris

SEATTLE — A seaweed-covered skiff that washed ashore in January on the Washington coast near Westport was recently confirmed as debris from the March 2011 tsunami in Japan.

State Ecology Department spokeswoman Linda Kent says a number on the boat helped with the confirmation through the Japanese consulate. She says it was from the Miyagi Prefecture, and the owner doesn’t want it back. Sendai is the capital of the prefecture and sustained much of the tsunami damage.

Two similar skiffs washed ashore on the Washington coast last month, also covered in seaweed, but they don’t have information that could confirm them as tsunami debris.