Tag Archives: Miss Ally

‘Playing with fire’: Fishing’s cruel seas and even crueler economics

On Feb. 12, 2013, an unseasonably warm evening, five young fishermen departed the West Head wharf on Cape Sable Island, N.S. aboard the Miss Ally, a 12-metre Cape Islander. The men, spanning in age from 21 to 33 — three of them fathers of young children—were headed out in pursuit of halibut, a valuable winter catch. On deck that night were Billy Jack Hatfield, a recently-engaged 33-year-old; Cole Nickerson, 28, a burly and strong former junior hockey player; Joel Hopkins, a 27-year-old father of two who absolutely loved the thrill of fishing; and Tyson Townsend, 25, a gifted athlete with a seven-month-old daughter. At the wheel, piloting the boat into darkness, was Katlin Nickerson, Miss Ally’s 21-year-old captain and owner. click here to read the story 13:13

Miss Ally captain’s mother pushes for personal tracking devices – Fishermen’s bodies never found after boat capsized in storm

Please Come HomeOcean_Signal_rescueME_PLB1_M webDella Sears wants fishermen to consider buying and wearing a personal beacon — a tracking device the size of a smartphone and a bit thicker. It can be attached to clothing and emits a signal that bounces off a satellite and sends a message to the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Halifax. Read more@cbcnews  06:45

Miss Ally logs detail efforts to save crew before sinking – ‘Something went terribly wrong’

fishing vessel miss allyRescue officials in Halifax desperately tried to keep up the spirits of five young fishermen on a Nova Scotia fishing boat before an enormous wall of water crashed into the boat and killed them, a CBC News investigation reveals. It’s been almost a year since the crew of the Miss Ally ran into trouble during a storm on Feb. 17, 2013, after leaving from the wharf five days earlier to fish for halibut. Read more@cbcnews 08:00

Miss Ally divers nominated for the Nova Scotia Medal of Bravery.

The four local divers who braved the elements to search the capsized hull of the Miss Ally have been nominated by the Municipality of Barrington for the Nova Scotia Medal of Bravery. Donald Mahaney, Gary Thurber, Thomas Nickerson and Thomas Hennigar were nominated by Barrington Municipal Council for the honour late last month. continued

Final services for Miss Ally fishermen this week

Please Come HomeTwo weeks of memorial services for the five fishermen lost on the Miss Ally will end with a final service, one for Katlin Nickerson on Saturday, March 16 at the Calvary Baptist Church in Woods Harbour. The memorial service for Billy Jack Hatfield will be held Thursday, March 14 at 2 p.m. at Huskilson’s Funeral Home Barrington. continued