Tag Archives: Mel Rocchio
Fishing fatality prompts call for safer vessels, full investigation
The brother of the 51-year-old fisherman from Alert Bay who died when the Miss Cory capsized is calling for safety improvements to the industry. Mel Rocchio was in the engine room when the vessel took less than 15 seconds to capsize Monday afternoon after listing in calm waters near Comox, off Cape Lazo. It was the first day of the commercial seine roe-herring fishery in the Strait of Georgia. Four other crew members survived. Rocchio’s brother, Jim, also a veteran of the commercial fishing industry, said a 19.5-metre-long boat doesn’t sink that fast unless there are “catastrophic failures.” He said he wants to see a full investigation into his brother’s death. “If anything, we need to learn from this,” he said. “I really feel in my heart that no one else should have to go through this. Identify the problem and correct it so other people don’t lose a brother, or uncle or grandfather.” continue reading the story here 10:54
Updated: Man feared dead in B.C. capsizing identified as ‘loving husband, brother, uncle’
Investigators spent the day searching for answers after a herring boat flipped and capsized near Comox, while one crew member remained missing and was presumed drowned. Alert Bay resident Mel Rocchio, 51, was on the vessel “Miss Cory” fishing for herring near Cape Lazo, about three nautical miles northeast of Comox, with four other crew members. Just before 4 p.m. the boat flipped, tossing four crew members into the ocean while Rocchio was trapped in the engine room, according to his brother Jim. “They had a really big set. The boat was listing and Mel went down into the engine room to turn the pumps on, and while he was down there the boat rolled over,” he said. continue reading the story here 08:17 From another article – Rocchio had been fishing out of the Campbell River Fisherman’s Wharf for about 15 years, according to Phyllis Titus, manager of the Campbell River Harbour Authority. Some in the fishing industry would jokingly call him “Melfunction,” Titus said, but Rocchio was a jack of all trades: heavy equipment operator, mechanic, carpenter and hunter. “He was a fabulous man, one of the true gentlemen in the fishing industry,” she said. Read the story here 09:13
