Joseph J. Detemple was 23 when he was last seen in Sitka, Alaska, on June 19, 1989. Known to some as Joe or Joey, he was reported missing alongside another man, Rodney Herman, after both failed to be found following an incident at sea.

A boat from which Detemple and Herman were missing was found burning near Midway Rock in Peril Straits at about 3:30 p.m. on June 19. The fire turned a routine missing persons inquiry into a complex investigation. The Alaska State Troopers worked to reconstruct the timeline, but the remote location, strong currents, and lack of witnesses left critical questions unanswered.

The official record links their disappearances to the boat fire, but the cause of the blaze and the ultimate fate of Detemple and Herman remain unknown. Does anyone who lived or worked around Peril Straits in June 1989 have information about that day or the boat found burning?