Alejandro Ortiz Espino was 20 when he disappeared from the Bering Sea on April 2, 2001. He was crewing aboard the 92-foot fishing vessel Arctic Rose, home-ported in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, which sank about 205 miles northwest of St. Paul Island while harvesting rock sole. The sinking produced no mayday; an emergency position-indicating radio beacon alerted the Coast Guard. Harsh weather and poor visibility hampered the search. The ship’s captain’s body was recovered, but Alejandro and 13 other crew members were never found.

A U.S. Coast Guard investigation later surveyed the wreck with a remotely operated vehicle and concluded that a watertight door in the processing area had been left open, likely causing rapid down-flooding and the vessel to sink in under two minutes. That finding was disputed by at least one National Transportation Safety Board investigator, who proposed hull damage as an alternative cause. The probe also noted major structural changes had been made without a new stability analysis and that several crew members had limited fishing experience; three crewmen were identified as Mexican nationals working under assumed names. Families later filed wrongful death lawsuits alleging owner negligence.

If anyone knew Alejandro, served on the Arctic Rose, or has information about the sinking or the crew, please share what is known.