Tag Archives: Hartlepool
Hartlepool fishermen reveal how they are still feeling impact of mass crustacean die-offs with fears for entire future
Hartlepool fishermen have spoken of their heartbreak as they say hundreds of years of heritage face being wiped out. Inshore fishers say stocks of crab, lobster and other marine life have not recovered since the sudden and huge crustacean die-offs witnessed from Seaham to Whitby in 2021. Several recent smaller die-offs have been reported in Hartlepool Bay and Teesmouth including a large number of razor clams and cockles on the beach at Seaton Carew. Dead and twitching crabs, similar to those seen in 2021, have also been picked up at sea. Fishermen, together with scientists and supporters, are continuing to fight for answers and are investigating to establish the cause of the ‘ecocide’ that has destroyed livelihoods. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09″25In a proud and troubled UK town, voters wonder whether their election choice will make a difference
“At the last election, I voted Conservative because Johnson promised our waters back, and lied through his teeth,” said Stan Rennie, a fisherman who has caught lobster off Hartlepool for five decades but says he can scarcely scrape a living anymore. “Because we’re the northeast, I don’t think the government even knows we exist,” he said. “We’re the forgotten land.” A proud, rugged town jutting into the North Sea 250 miles (400 kilometers) north of London, Hartlepool is scarred by industrial decline. The shipyards and steelworks that once employed thousands are long gone. The fishing fleet has been shrinking for years. In a 2016 referendum, Hartlepool voted heavily to leave the European Union, persuaded by Johnson and other Brexit-backers that quitting the bloc would let the U.K. control immigration and free up billions in cash for struggling communities. photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:56
‘The job’s f****d’ – Fishers slam local MP for comments
The North East Fishing Collective (NEFC), which represents fishers from Hartlepool to Whitby, was established to support fishers along that stretch of coast after unexplained mass deaths of shellfish in the area in several events from September 2021 onwards left them without catches. Hartlepool MP, Jill Mortimer, last week shared a photo of her in a meeting with Environment Minister Mark Spencer in Parliament where she described how “prawners have experienced a temporary but significant reduction in their catches due to prawns burrowing into sands.” “The prawns and catches returned,” she wrote, however the NEFC has disputed this in no uncertain terms. >click to read< 14:57
BBC documentary examines mass crab die off on Teesside coast and what has happened since
A TV documentary examining the impact of the mass crab and lobster die off on the Teesside coast is set to air. We Are England: Trouble at Sea looks at the events of last October and what has happened since. In it, film makers speak to fishermen, conservationists, the Tees port authority PD Ports and scientists to document the effects of the worrying occurrence, the subsequent investigation and the theories on its cause that have been an ongoing source of dispute. Teessiders will know huge piles of crabs, lobsters and shellfish began to wash up on beaches around the Redcar and Markse areas as well as Hartlepool a year ago before washing down the coast as far as Whitby. They were seen in piles that were waist deep in some places and most were dead or dying.>click to read< 21:32
Killing joke: how Defra dismissed the Tees Bay die-off
It seems that no matter how often Defra and its partner agencies are exposed as inept over their handling of this crisis, their response is simply to deny the truth and carry on. The grim response of the Environment Agency (EA) to the mass crustacean die-off in Tees Bay moved up a gear last week. Where once they only patronised the inshore fishermen about the probable cause, they have now shown themselves prepared to do it on national TV. Friday 30 September Channel 4 News featured the ongoing tragedy and, in the process, interviewed Hartlepool fisher, Stan Rennie. Video link, >click to read< For more about this, >click here< 07:52
‘On its knees’ – Public meeting to look at how to support Hartlepool’s fishing industry
Councillors unanimously backed the move at the latest Hartlepool full council meeting, pledging to do all they can to support the sector after the mass deaths of crabs and lobsters in the area. The motion was raised by Labour’s Cllr Rachel Creevy, who highlighted how the region’s fishing industry has been decimated since the issue first occurred in autumn 2021. A Hartlepool fisherman invited to speak at the meeting said the industry is “part of their heritage” and their “lifetime’s work”. But they are now “desperate” with the “ecosystem wiped out”. >click to read< 10:55
Mysterious killer continues to wipe out North East sea life
Fishing has long been a key part of Teesside’s proud heritage, but locals fear their livelihoods could be wiped out due to a devastating destruction of sea life. “There’s something going into their system that’s killing them and it’s going up and down the coast and nobody is answering our questions,” says lifelong fisherman Paul Graves. “We’ve done this all our life; we know what’s happening and we know when it’s not right.” >click to read< 09:32
Fishing boat sinks after catching fire off the Hartlepool coast
Both Hartlepool RNLI lifeboats were paged at 10.26 am on Monday, August 9, following a request by Humber Coastguard after reports that flares had been fired from a boat off Hartlepool. Both Hartlepool RNLI boats launched at 10.35 am and were alongside the stricken vessel within a few minutes. On arrival at the scene, a lifeboat crew member from the inshore lifeboat was placed aboard the second fishing boat that had taken the skipper to provide casualty care although none was required. photos, >click to read< 10:11
Fisherman rescued after falling overboard in the early hours of Sunday morning
Hartlepool RNLI lifeboats were launched at 02:43 by Humber Coastguard following a report that the man had gone overboard from a 10m fishing vessel. However by the time the rescue service reached the incident the stricken man had been recovered from the water by the fishing boat’s skipper and was back onboard their vessel. A crew member from the RNLI team was placed aboard the boat to assess the casualty. >click to read< 07:33
