SEATTLE, Wash. -- Both the Transportation Safety Board and the U.S. Coast Guard are investigating a deadly collision between two fishing boats off the coast of Washington state Friday.

It was foggy 4:30 Friday morning when the 27-metre Canadian boat Viking Storm hit the drifting 12-metre American fishing vessel Maverick, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

The Maverick went down quickly, and only three of the four people on board survived.

The missing crewman, Kelly Dickerson, was in a room in the forward part of the ship and the Maverick sank bow first.

"He was trapped," Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Denning, chief of marine investigation in Seattle said Monday.

At least one other crew member was trapped as well, but made it out by breaking a window. The three survivors landed in the water without time to put on life jackets or survival suits.

"They narrowly escaped," Denning said.

They were picked up within five minutes by the crew of the Viking Storm.

The Coast Guard received an emergency beacon signal from the Maverick about the same time the Viking Storm reported the collision in the Pacific.

Coast Guard boats and a helicopter looked for more than a day before the search was suspended Saturday. Dickerson, 32, was presumed drowned.

His father, Darby Dickerson, 66, of Port Angeles, was the owner and captain of the Maverick and was on watch at the time of the collision. The long-liner, home port Seattle, had been out fishing for black cod.

The Viking Storm, home port Vancouver, B.C., had a full load of hagfish caught in Canadian waters that it was taking to Grays Harbor. It was travelling at 8 to 10 mph, Denning said.

Both vessels had radar operating.

"Fog was a significant factor," Denning said. "Visibility was certainly an issue."

The three survivors were in good condition and transferred by the Coast Guard to the Quileute Harbor Marina at La Push, Wash.

The Viking Storm returned to Canada and took its hagfish to Ucluelet on the west side of Vancouver Island.

A joint investigation with Canadian officials began immediately, Denning said, for what's called a "serious marine incident" because of the loss of life and property loss of between $100,000 and $500,000.

An investigator was flown to the scene and tested both crews for alcohol. No evidence of alcohol use was found. Drug tests are pending, Denning said.

The investigator also flew to Victoria, B.C., and went to Ucluelet on Sunday with Canadian investigators to check the Viking Storm navigation equipment and interview its three crew members. The Viking Storm did not take on water from the collision, Denny said.

The Maverick had almost 1,900 litres of diesel on board. None of it could be recovered because the vessel sank in 500 metres of water, said Lt. j.g. Chelsey Olson of the incident management division.

The Coast Guard notified Olympic National Park, the NOAA Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary and the Hoh, Quinault and Quileute tribes of the possible pollution.

The goal of the Coast Guard investigation is to make safety recommendations that would prevent a similar collision from happening again, Denning said. There's also a possibility of civil penalties or criminal sanctions.