Tag Archives: Cowichan Bay

Poor boat maintenance led to fatal sinking of fishing vessel near Bamfield

Poor boat maintenance contributed to the sinking of a fishing vessel near Bamfield two years ago that killed two crew members, according to a Transportation Safety Board of Canada report released Tuesday. Two fishermen died and one was rescued on Aug. 11, 2020, after a commercial tuna fishing boat that left Cowichan Bay capsized off Washington state. In the early morning hours, the F/V Arctic Fox II reported taking on water. The master attempted to deal with the water and ordered the crew members to prepare to abandon the vessel. >click to read< 13:46

Cowichan Bay Fishermen’s Wharf Association offering free moorage to gillnetters

Kim Olsen has been a commercial fisherman on the coast for decades and says he’s never seen people like him hurt as much as they are right now. “Families have split up, people have lost houses, they’ve lost boats and I know one fellow who has contemplated suicide because he’s so far in the hole now because of what the government has done to us,” said Olsen.,, Commercial Fishers like Al Ladret travel up and down the coast, spending thousands of dollars on fuel only to get to be told at the last minute there’s no opening for fishing. >video, click to read< 08:49

DFO to conduct emergency review of new West Coast prawn fishery regulations

“It’s hard to say if the review will accomplish anything, but I’m happy the issue is being taken seriously,” “So far, due to pressure from the public, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada has said that, as far as they are concerned, defying the new regulations is a contravention of the law, but they won’t enforce the regulations in 2021. But that’s just punting it down the line. Fishers and the communities need this changed and we need a long-term solution to this issue.” DFO’s objection to freezing spot prawns on fishing boats is in reference to a reinterpretation of the regulation requiring all harvested products to be readily available for measurement by enforcement officers on fishing boats. >click to read< 07:55

Sea lions throw a party on Cowichan Bay’s federal breakwater to feast on spawning salmon

Steller and California sea lions jostle for space, bark 24-7, and leave stinky feces on the breakwater. About 300 sea lions will climb onto the 182-metre-long concrete dock at one time during at the height of the season, said federal harbour manager Mark Mercer. “They are three layers deep out there.” The majority are males, he said, likening the event to a big bachelor party. Depending on species, males range from about 850 to 2,500 pounds. “Like I tell people: ‘What you see on the breakwater is literally the tip of the iceberg. That’s a tenth of what’s out there.’ >click to read< 12:29

Blockade of the prawn fishery could ruin fishermen – Lance Underwood skipper of Justin Time II and Quicksilver Girl

I am a commercial fisherman from Cowichan Bay. I run a commercial prawn and crab boat, and the local spot prawn fishery is incredibly important to my family and I. I live in a modest home with my beautiful wife and amazing six-month-old son. I pay our bills, provide food, and pay our mortgage through my income which I earn during our short prawn season. Read more here  14:22