Family and friends are depending on you to come back alive. By Jerry Druzan
It’s time to take a mid-season time out. Maybe not a long one, just a few minutes to think about what we’re doing. The Bristol Bay run is strong and running long. Anecdotally, six small vessels have swamped in the Bay due to weather and overloading, fortunately with no loss of life. Alaska commercial fishing has already seen nine fatalities in the first half of 2017. Alaska has not seen this many fatalities within the first half of the year in 13 years. Since July 1, we have had two more fatalities this time in Prince William Sound and in Ugashik Bay. In Alaska, commercial fishing fatalities have been averaging about five per year for the past five years. Alaska commercial fishermen should be rightfully proud of the more than 76% decrease in deaths since the 1980s, but 2017 is experiencing a significant increase in fatalities. Now is a good time to take a few minutes and think about how we can further reduce risks to our vessels and crews. Following are some items to focus on: click here to read the op-ed 12:39
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