Tag Archives: First responders

A Fishing Vessel Ran Aground at the Sonoma Coast. Could It Have Been Saved?

July 17, 2024   National, Pacific

It was nearing midnight and too dark for captain Chris Fox to see the land or determine how far offshore he was. But he knew he was too close. The water was shallow. The F/V Aleutian Storm was on a sandbar. Fox needed help. The engine and all other onboard systems were still working, but Fox knew he could hold the 57-ton fishing vessel only so long before the waves drove it ashore. Fox radioed the U.S. Coast Guard for help, which wasn’t immediately forthcoming—not in the way he had hoped, at least. The February loss of the Aleutian Storm is the latest controversy surrounding the Coast Guard’s local response to grounded vessels. While the details of each emergency are unique, they are viewed with similar frustration and pain by some who believe more could—and should— have been done to save them from breaking apart on land. Still, critics like veteran Fort Bragg fisherman Chris Iversen, a friend of Fox’s, sense déjà vu in the pattern of lost vessels—each briefly in a position for a possible save only to later run aground. Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:34

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F/V Bing Bing: “If it wasn’t for this woman”- Fishermen OK after 55-foot boat sinks off Scituate coast

February 3, 2022   National, New England

Pam Harght was working from her home in Marshfield Tuesday afternoon when something outside caught her attention. She was on a business call at her desk and looking out the window at the ocean, and she had a clear view of a fishing vessel on the water. She’d recognized the 55-foot boat because she’d seen it before, going up and down the coast. But this time, it appeared to be in trouble. >click to read< Fishermen OK after 55-foot boat sinks off Scituate coast– The 55-foot boat was found sinking about a half mile off Humarock Beach and three people, including 50-year-old Joe Rodrick, were found clinging to some fishing gear. They were pulled to safety and transported to the hospital with severe hypothermia. In addition to Rodrick, the boat’s captain remains hospitalized. The third man was released and all are expected to be OK. Video, >click to read< 08:07

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