Safety board calls for changes two years after Nova Scotia fisherman's death at sea
CTV
An investigation into how the Canadian Coast Guard responded to a Nova Scotia vessel in distress two years ago raises questions about why one fisherman died after a towing operation went awry.
An investigation into how the Canadian Coast Guard responded to a Nova Scotia vessel in distress two years ago raises questions about why one fisherman died after a towing operation went awry.
In an investigation report released Thursday, the Transportation Safety Board says the fishing boat Mucktown Girl was returning to Canso, N.S., with five crew aboard on March 11, 2022, when it was disabled by electrical problems.
The captain called for a tow from the coast guard as a storm was closing in.
After a seven-hour voyage, the Canadian Coast Guard Ship Jean Goodwill reached the drifting boat and attached a 300-metre tow line to the smaller vessel's bollard. But as the weather turned rough, the bollard broke off six hours into the recovery mission.
At that point, the decision was made to let the fishing crew ride out the storm aboard the Mucktown Girl rather than attach another tow line that could damage the boat.
By 6 a.m. on March 13, wind speeds had reached 70 to 90 kilometres per hour. The waves were as high as 10 metres -- twice the height of the fishing boat, which was then taking on water. Crew aboard Jean Goodwill relayed the mayday distress call from the fishing boat, which was 44 kilometres from shore.
Minutes later, amid heavy rain and dense fog, the five fishermen donned immersion suits and jumped into a life raft. In response, the coast guard crew lowered a scramble net -- a type of rope ladder -- over the side of the 77-metre medium icebreaker.
