On Sunday, November 27, 2022, 27-year-old Arne Dahl and his girlfriend, Kelsey Leak, left their homestead in Point Baker, Alaska, aboard Dahl’s 39-foot wooden fishing vessel Randi Jo to gather firewood. Their golden retriever Mili and Leak’s seven-year-old pet parrot Petrie were aboard. While returning on a calm, sunny morning the boat struck a rock, tearing a large hole in the port side and beginning to sink.

Leak was awakened by the impact; the couple and the dog boarded a towed skiff that was then pushed under the larger boat and sank. They swam to a small rocky islet called West Rock. Dahl returned to the Randi Jo to collect papers, then chose to swim toward the larger nearby Joe Mace Island to seek help despite Leak’s pleas. He promised to return, swam away, and was not seen again.

Leak and Mili were rescued about 24 hours later by a passing fishing boat. A search by the U.S. Coast Guard and Wrangell Search and Rescue recovered no sign of Dahl, who is presumed lost at sea. Did anyone in the area hear or see a boat near West Rock or Joe Mace Island that morning?