Family Members Open Up About Five Fishermen Who Are Missing in Alaska's Icy Strait: 'So Devastated'

Loved ones are remembering the five fishermen whose boat overturned in the frigid waters off Alaska.

The men — Travis Kapp, Jacob Hannah, Alex Ireland, Emilio "EJ" Celaya and Michael Brown — made a mayday call at approximately 12:07 a.m. local time on Sunday, Dec. 1, and reported that their fishing vessel Wind Walker was overturning in the Icy Strait near Couverden Point, about 25 miles southwest of Juneau, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

After searching for the men for nearly 24 hours and over 108 square miles, the search was called off on Monday, Dec. 2.

In the wake of the accident, the men's loved ones are now sharing stories about them.

Related: Family of 4 Found Clinging to Overturned Boat Rescued in Gulf of Mexico

“We are all so devastated,” Celaya’s aunt, Stephanie Molt told KTUU-TV.

Molt said the 34-year-old "daredevil" from Las Vegas was a former firefighter with the Forest Service and loved to ride motorcycles and snowboard. He leaves behind a wife and four children, she added.

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Ireland, who preferred to go by the last name of Zamantakis, “loved to fish,” his father told the station. He and his partner had an infant son.

“It didn’t matter where we went, he had a pole in the water someplace, so being on a commercial fishing boat was right up his alley,” Mike Zamantakis noted.

Hannah’s mother, Carol Hannah, told KTUU that she initially wasn’t enthusiastic about her son pursuing his passion.

Related: 3 Dead, Including Hawaii Couple, 2 Remain Missing After Boat Found Partially Submerged in Alaska

“I couldn’t be mad at him because that’s what he’s lived for — is for going to Alaska and fishing,” Carol said. “So he did what he wanted throughout his life. I’m very proud because Alaska is what helped him become the man he was.”

In a GoFundMe, the sister of Kapp’s partner, Stephanie, shared the missing boat captain who owned and operated the fishing vessel was a "profound gem of a human."

“He had three passions in life; being a great father to Paige, his new blended family with Stephanie and her daughter Alice, and running a commercial fishing operation,” she wrote.

Related: 4 Men Rescued After Boat Capsizes in Florida Waters: 'We're Blessed We're Alive'

Brown’s family was stunned to hear about the news that the boat in which he was working had capsized, according to KTUU.

The victim's sister, Haven, and his parents, Warren and Patricia Brown, said the former Eagle Scout loved fishing and had a positive way of looking at the world.

She added, “He just loved sharing his smile with everyone."

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