Russell Stanley Farrell was 60 when he was last seen aboard the F/V Sequel, a 67-foot steel trawler, on August 15, 1989. The vessel capsized and sank about two to three miles north of Story Island in Prince William Sound, Alaska. Two other people on board, Kristen Hvatum and Sandra Hvatum, were also lost.

Reports indicate the Sequel became unstable during a ballast water transfer, capsized rapidly, and sank in the remote waters. The location and suddenness of the event would have left little time for escape and complicated any immediate rescue. The three were reported to the Alaska State Troopers on August 25, 1989, and are presumed to have drowned.