Tag Archives: Michael “Mack” McNeil
An Unprovoked Attack: Sea lion bites fisherman at Sand Point dock
A crewman aboard a fishing vessel tied up at the Peter Pan Seafoods dock at Sand Point was bitten by a sea lion who jumped aboard the commercial fishing vessel, causing severe injury, the Aleutians East Borough said in a report published Feb. 28. The attack on Michael “Mack” McNeil, of Deer Park, WA, occurred on Jan. 23, on board the F/V Cape St. Elias, the borough reported in an article written by Laura Tanis, borough communications director and editor of “In The Loop,” the borough’s online newsletter. Owner/skipper Ben Ley said the attack was unprovoked. “We were taking off a pollock net and putting on our cod net at the time,” Ley said. “There were zero fish on board. That’s what’s kind of eerie about this.” McNeil was standing with his back to the stern ramp as the crew moved a net forward off the reel and stacked it to put away. None of them saw the sea lion swimming around nearby. “This was completely out of the blue,” McNeil said. “I was running hydraulics, and I walked around to clear the backlash. The sea lion came up all the way out of the water, jumped up over the stern ramp and up onto the deck, several feet up.” The sea lion grabbed him before it even hit the deck, McNeil said. Other crew members grabbed McNeil before he got any closer to the stern ramp. continue reading the story here 14:10
