ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The search for two missing fishermen is set to resume at about 9:30 a.m. Alaska time, shortly before daybreak, after a Seattle-owned fish-processing vessel sank in frigid, stormy seas off Alaska's Aleutian Islands with an 11-man crew. Five men were killed and four survived.

One of the men missing from their ship, the Katmai, is from the Washougal area, near Vancouver, Wash. A member of that man's family spoke to Seattle station KIRO by phone Wednesday night and said they're praying that the man is still floating somewhere in a life raft.

A Coast Guard plane and helicopter from Adak as well as an Air National Guard plane and helicopter were to be used in the search, Petty Officer Wes Shinn said.

The search began early Wednesday after an emergency signal was received from the Katmai. Another vessel reported the Katmai had radioed it was taking on water in a stern compartment as it headed toward Dutch Harbor with a load of cod.

The fishing vessels Courageous and Patricia Lee helped the Coast Guard search for the missing vessel and together recovered five deceased crewmembers from the Katmai.

One vessel found debris, survival suits, fishing gear, a buoy and a life ring, Coast Guard Petty Officer Levi Read said.

U.S. Coast Guard rescuers in a Jayhawk helicopter pulled the survivors from a life raft about 15 hours after their ship sent out a distress call early Wednesday morning. The water was 43 degrees.

The crew's survival suits, physical condition, and their efforts to keep one another semi-warm and awake all could have helped them endure, said Read.

"They were in good spirits and in good shape," Read said. "They asked to stay, so they could continue to help with the search."

The four survivors were discovered in the raft near the Amchitka Pass, which links the Bering Sea to the Pacific Ocean about 1,400 miles southwest of Anchorage.

It wasn't clear what happened to the 93-foot Katmai, a cod fisher-processor vessel. The Coast Guard received an e-mail from another boat, the Blue Ballard, that said the Katmai had lost steering and was taking on water, Read said.

The Coast Guard received an electronic signal at 1 a.m. from the Katmai. A search helicopter and C-130 airplane were sent from Kodiak, a journey of about 4½ hours. The plane crew spotted two strobe lights in the water and dropped two life rafts. But the searchers had seen no sign of the Katmai or its crew, Read said.

One strobe was attached to an empty survival suit and the other was attached to a floating emergency beacon that can be triggered automatically by contact with water. Vessels are required to carry those devices to signal emergencies and aid searches.

The Coast Guard did not receive a mayday call, but given the boat's remote location, it may not have been heard.

"It's hard to say whether they tried or not," Read said.

Coast Guard Public Affairs in Anchorage said were 20-foot seas and winds over 50 mph Wednesday. Pictures from the agency overnight showing two Good Samaritan vessels searching for the missing Katmai in rough seas.

Captain Phil Harris, of TV's "The Deadliest Catch" said that he heard that whatever happened to the Katmai happened fast.

"It sounded to me like these guys had something go wrong in the stern of the boat, in the lazarette (an enclosed area at the stern of the boat), and they were taking on water and they e-mailed their sister boat and their office -- and, that was it," said Harris.

Harris said the boat's captain may have ordered the crew to abandon ship within seconds.

"Thirty seconds later, (the conditions) could be really bad. Things just snowball and go out of control. In these kinds of deals, things happen really fast," Harris said.

The Katmai was carrying a load of cod and heading toward Dutch Harbor on Unalaska Island, Read said. Dutch Harbor is 800 miles southwest of Anchorage.

The Katmai is owned by Seattle-based Katmai Fisheries.