Daily Archives: May 14, 2021

Search suspended for missing fisherman who fell overboard off Grays Harbor, WA

The Coast Guard suspended the search Friday for a 47-year-old man who reportedly fell overboard while underway fishing for halibut 28 miles northwest of Grays Harbor. Missing is Jason LaBrie of Oregon City, Oregon. Fishermen aboard the 26-foot vessel Defiance II activated an emergency position indicating radio beacon after realizing LaBrie was missing. Fishermen aboard the 26-foot vessel Defiance II activated an emergency position indicating radio beacon after realizing LaBrie was missing. >click to read< 18:55

Silence from Shoreline Press on Undersea Electric Problems – We’re not talking what you can see, it’s what you can’t

All the exciting press about the installation of windfarms focuses on the seemingly blithe turbine blades swirling innocently in the free breeze,,, the mantra offered by Baker, Raimondo, Lamonte and Cuomo. The necessary undersea electric cables that connect the swan like turbines to the shore are viewed by the wind industry itself as their Achilles Heel. It has already shown its ugly face in the functioning of the five turbines off Block Island. This has placed an unexpected $80 million repair bill (just five turbines, mind you, and less that 18 miles of cable) on the rate payers. Orsted, which has  bought the Rhode Island wind company, has publicly said “we do not discuss our financial matters.” The repair will take two years, and a large swath of ocean is closed to commercial fishing—blues, sword, squid, lobster, clams, flounder, haddock. No fishing! Trawl gear hauled along the bottom will catch on that now exposed cable and strum it like a banjo string. Twang! Snap!!  >click to read< 16:54

A reminder! ‘Always have a working fire extinguisher onboard’

Following a boat fire in Port Hardy, fire crews are putting out a reminder to always have a working fire extinguisher onboard your boat. On Tuesday (May 11th), Port Hardy Fire Rescue was called after a small boat caught fire that same morning at Fisherman’s Wharf. “A great response by our crews for a small fire in the cab of a commercial fishing boat,” they said. >click to read< 15:34

USDA approves $25 million wild caught shrimp-buy program to help distressed seafood industry

The USDA announced the purchase of Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic wild-caught shrimp through its Section 32 Program for distribution to food banks and other nonprofit nutrition programs. The Gulf Coast is a leading source of the shrimp caught for domestic consumption. The $25 million shrimp purchase is authorized under Section 32 of the Agriculture Act of 1935. Section 32 purchases support a broad variety of U.S. agriculture producers and provide USDA Food and Nutrition Service nutrition assistance programs with commodities for distribution. >click to read< 11:03

Jaime Battiste: Balancing conservation and fairness in a ‘moderate livelihood’ for Indigenous fishermen

What is fair to the Mi’kmaq, who have been deprived of their legal right to a practice passed down for generations? What is fair to the commercial fishermen, many of whom today are of Mi’kmaq descent, who depend on the fishery and healthy stocks for their own livelihoods? There is no easy answer. The report addresses two misconceptions that have added fuel to this fire.,,, As someone who is fluent in the Mi’kmaw language, the Mi’kmaw language has no way to describe “an individual unfettered right, to accumulate wealth.” In fact, the closest would be a pejorative term that’s closer to greed. Much like the how the government’s right to regulate has limits, the right to a moderate livelihood also has its limits and responsibilities. >click to read< 09:42

F/V Scandies Rose: NTSB to Hold Meeting to Determine Probable Cause for Sinking

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced Thursday its plan to hold a public board meeting to determine the probable cause for the 2019 sinking of the fishing vessel Scandies Rose. The 130-foot Scandies Rose sank December 31, 2019 about 2.5 miles south of Sutwik Island, Alaska with the loss of five crew members. Two others were rescued. The loss of the Scandies Rose marked the worst accident to hit Alaska’s commercial fishing industry since the sinking of the F/V Destination with the loss of all six crew members in February 2017.,, The Coast Guard previously convened a Marine Board of Investigation concluding in March to consider evidence related to the accident. >click to read< 08:55

Four fishermen rescued from liferaft after fishing vessel fire off the Cork coast

Shortly before 2am this morning, Valentia Coast Guard was alerted to a fire on board the ‘Horizon’ fishing vessel around 20 miles south east of the Old Head of Kinsale. A multi-agency response co-ordinated by the Valentia Coast Guard,,, Within minutes of the mayday alert being issued, the crew abandoned the vessel to their liferaft as the fire had engulfed their boat. Shortly afterwards, the crew was recovered from their liferaft by the Offshore Supply ship Pathfinder that had been operating at the Kinsale Gas field. >photos, click to read< 07:52