Washington fishermen see poor Fraser River pink salmon haul

BELLINGHAM, Wash. (AP) — Fishermen in Washington say this year's fishery for Fraser River pink salmon saw few catches, but record runs in parts of Alaska kept prices down, hurting the industry.

The Bellingham Herald reports that data from the Pacific Salmon Commission shows commercial fishermen caught only about 640,100 pink salmon in U.S. waters this year, far fewer than the preseason forecast of 14.4 million. About 4.2 million pink salmon are believed to have migrated from the ocean into the Fraser River.

Puget Sound-area seafood processors say the small catch means fewer dollars in the community's economy.

While Fraser River pink salmon were scarce, the haul in parts of Alaska was booming. More than 97 million pink salmon were caught in Prince William Sound.