Daily Archives: October 27, 2023

California commercial Dungeness crab season delayed

California’s commercial Dungeness crab seasons will be delayed this year, the California Department of Fish & Wildlife announced Friday. The delays are being enacted in order to protect whales from becoming entangled in crab traps. The opening of the commercial Dungeness crab fishing season will be delayed in Fishing Zones 3, 4, 5, and 6, an area of the state’s coastline that stretches from the Sonoma/Mendocino County line to the U.S.A.-Mexico border. The delay is due to a large number of humpback whales in the area. >>click to read<< 17:33

Fishing crew speaks after finding missing American off B.C. coast

A B.C. fishing crew has found an American fisherman who had been missing off the Pacific coast for weeks. John Planes and his Ucluelet fishing crew spotted an emergency lift raft off the coast of Vancouver Island, Thursday morning. What they found was shocking when they arrived at the life raft — an American fisherman who had been lost at sea for 13 days. The American, who is unnamed at this point, departed from Washington State on Oct. 12. “We were getting near the end of our fishing set and (a crew member) spotted the life raft,” Planes said. “He hugged me right away as soon as he got on board. He was crying, he was just so glad somebody had actually picked him up. Video, >>click to read<< 13:55

Scottish firm fined £20,000 for illegally fishing for King Scallops without a license in Isle of Man

A Scottish firm has been fined £20,000 after its vessel was found fishing illegally in the Isle of Man’s territorial waters last year. The owner of the Star Fishing Company Limited pleaded guilty to fishing for King Scallops without a licence on 3 December 2022 at Douglas Courthouse on Tuesday. Prosecutor Rachel Cubbon told the court the Star of Jura entered Manx waters twice in the early hours on Saturday 3 December, which was confirmed when DEFA and Marine Scotland examined the boat’s on-board monitoring and tracking systems. Further investigation of the Master’s daybook and electronic logbook revealed 12 bags of King Scallops had been landed in Manx waters, which was not declared. >>click to read<< 10:24

Whalsay scallop fisherman scoops ‘Hero of the Year’ award

A scallop fisherman from Whalsay has been named Hero of the Year at a UK fishing awards ceremony. George Andrew Williamson scooped the award on Thursday night for his work in championing the importance of sustainable seafood. The award, which recognises an outstanding individual who has driven forward further sustainability efforts, was given to Mr Williamson at a ceremony in London. Accepting the award via video link, he said: “It’s a great honour and I was really not expecting this.>>click to read<<,>and here< 09:04

Boatyard Offers Assistance to Commercial Fishermen Hampered by Regulations

KKMI Boatyard Offers Assistance to Commercial Fishermen Reeling in the bad taste of lost revenue. KKMI announced today they will be offering free haulouts to commercial fishing vessels, giving this hard-hit industry some much needed financial relief after a cancelled salmon season made it quite difficult to eke out a living. This offer is good at both KKMI locations on the San Franciso Bay – Richmond and Sausalito.  We are in a position to help out and we are honored to be able to do so,” said KKMI Founder, Paul Kaplan. >>click to read<< 08:16

Survivor From Lost Fishing Boat Saved After Coast Guard Ended Search

This week, the U.S. Coast Guard ended searches for two commercial fishing vessels that each disappeared without a trace, one in Washington and another in Georgia. The Washington case ended in a miracle: a crewmember was found alive after formal search efforts had ended. On Tuesday, Coast Guard Station Grays Harbor announced that it had launched a search for a 43-foot commercial fishing vessel, the Evening, which was nine days overdue. Miraculously, one crewmember of the Evening survived and was found by a good Samaritan vessel on Thursday morning – a day after the formal search ended. He was floating in a life raft off the west coast of Vancouver Island, near Tofino. The whereabouts of the other crewmember are not known. On Thursday, the U.S. Coast Guard suspended a search for a commercial fishing vessel F/V Carol Ann that had gone missing with three crewmembers off the coast of Brunswick, Georgia. >>click to read<< 07:15