Tag Archives: St. Lawrence
Shipping container traffic making waves on St. Lawrence/Great Lakes system
On Monday, the container ship Peyton Lynn C, which loaded in Antwerp, Belgium, passed through the locks in Massena and Iroquois, Ontario, on her way upriver on the St. Lawrence heading for the Great Lakes. In her wake, her owners believe, may be a new era in regards to a shipping method for the international waterway. Industry experts say that about 90% of non-bulk cargo worldwide is transported by container ships, with large coastal ports along the Atlantic and Pacific oceans the hubs of that activity. But the container vessel business model has begun to create ripples in the St. Lawrence and Great Lakes. photos, >click to read< 18:19
1 year after tragic sinking, St. Lawrence marks anniversary with memorials to those lost at sea
The heartache is still as fresh as it was one year ago for Kerri Lynn Kettle. Kettle lost her husband, Isaac Kettle, when the fishing vessel Sarah Anne sank off St. Lawrence in May 2020. Now, she’s raising two little boys on her own. “It’s been a living nightmare. We are slowly getting through it,” said Kettle. 
Three other men from the community lost their lives when the crab fishing vessel went down on May 25, 2020: skipper Eddie Joe Norman, 67; his son, Scott Norman, 35; and his nephew, Jody Norman, 42. What makes things even harder for Kerri Lynn Kettle is that her husband wasn’t even a commercial fisherman. Isaac Kettle, 33, had been working as a driller at a gold mine in Ontario. >click to read< 21:32
‘You can’t touch the union boat’- Part III: ‘Where did all the f—ing money go?’
Former offshore trawlermen demand investigation into what happened to millions of dollars generated from offshore crab quota meant to support them, and how it was sold without their knowledge for fraction of value to Conne River First Nation The controversial offshore snow crab quota fished by “the union boat” for almost 20 years, generating revenues estimated at between $30 and $60 million, was quietly sold late last year to the 
Miawpukek First Nation at Conne River for $1 million.,, The news raises the question why the offshore crab quota that reached as high as 500 tonnes (1.1 million pounds) sold for millions of dollars less than market value? The going rate today for a small supplementary crab licence (65,000 pounds) is more than $2 million.,, Bateman worries that nothing will come from his whistleblowing. “If a Fishery Officer feels as strongly as I do to come forward publicly and nothing is done, then maybe there’s no hope.” >click to read< 10:48
‘You can’t touch the union boat’- Part II – FFAW crab licence
When Fishery Officers Jason Bateman and Ryan Legge inspected the F/V Katrina Charlene in late June, 2011 at the wharf in St. Lawrence word spread immediately up the chain of command within the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) in Newfoundland and Labrador. Managers themselves with the department’s Enforcement and Conservation division specifically referred to the fishing vessel as “operating under the FFAW crab licence. ”On June, 27th 2011, the day the skipper of the Katrina Charlene was charged with illegally fishing undersized snow crab, an email,,, It read: “Kevin, A heads up that we are in the process of an inspection in St. Lawrence on the F/V Katrina Charlene operated under the FFAW crab licence. >click to read< 10:33
‘You can’t touch the union boat’- Former Fishery Officer alleges DFO kept 2012 Katrina Charlene conviction quiet
The Katrina Charlene and the crab quota it was built to fish have been in the news for almost 20 years for their connection to the FFAW. The story made national news in February when a Fishery Officer alleged DFO kept quiet a conviction against the trawler, so as to not embarrass the union. Today, there’s news the quota sold recently for $1 million, a fraction of its estimated value, to Conne River First Nation. The boat and quota have been sold, but questions remain. What happened to the tens of millions of dollars generated by the crab quota? Fisherman’s Road lays out the story as it’s never been told. First of a three-part series. By Ryan Cleary >click to read< 11:59
Family of Newfoundland fisherman Isaac Kettle fairly certain he has been found
It wasn’t how they wanted to find him, but Isaac Kettle’s family is comforted in knowing that at least his body can finally come home. “This is the best, worst news we could get…,” his wife Kerri Lynn Kettle said after hearing that a body found near Arnold’s Cove on the weekend is likely her husband’s. “But it was such a relief.” Kettle, 33, was one of four St. Lawrence fishermen lost at sea aboard the Sarah Anne, a 36-foot fishing vessel, after it set out from their hometown to go crab fishing on May 25.,,, Work is underway by police and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to identify the body, which was sent to St. John’s for examination.The RCMP contacted Kettle’s family, but no positive identification has yet been made. While they’re still waiting for confirmation, the family is certain Kettle has been found. >click to read< 11:01
Search for missing St. Lawrence fisherman continues a week after official search ended
The search for missing fisherman Issac Kettle continued on Thursday with the help of supply vessel Paul A. Sacuta, tug boat Keewatin and sonar equipment supplied by marine surveying company Fugro Geo-Surveys. Kettle remains missing after the fishing vessel Sarah Anne sank off the coast of St. Lawrence,,, Pike said there had been no news from the search effort ongoing throughout the day, noting the Paul A. Sacuta left St. John’s on Sunday night and has been searching the fishing grounds, about 23 miles from St. Lawrence, since arriving on Monday morning. Pike said the Keewatin joined the search on Wednesday. >click to read< 20:20
Tugboat, armed forces aircraft contributing to search for missing fisherman and F/V Sarah Anne
Several private companies and the Canadian Armed Forces have joined the search for a fishing vessel that went missing off the coast of St. Lawrence last week after the Canadian Coast Guard concluded its search Wednesday. R.J.G. Construction has partnered with marine surveying company Fugro GeoSurveys to find the Sarah Anne, as well as the lone missing crew member, Issac Kettle. For Andrew Perrot, the company’s vessel manager and a St. Lawrence native, the mission is personal. The company’s tugboat MV Keewatin is currently being outfitted with a winch and sonar and Perrot said he’s hoping to have it in the water and ready to go by Monday evening or Tuesday morning. >click to read< 18:17
F/V Sarah Anne: The deadly, relentless sea reminds us of the steep cost of fishing
I’ve long wondered how many people in North America, as they peruse the offerings at their supermarkets, specialty stores and menus, ever give much thought to the unseen, human cost behind their tasty seafood. Those who live close to the ocean know too well the perils that come with fishing. Those who don’t may never know. This week, Newfoundland and Labrador felt that chill as St. Lawrence became the focus of a story that is both sadly and terrifyingly familiar. The Sarah Anne, a fishing boat with four men aboard, did not come back as expected Monday night with a load of crab, and indeed never came home at all. By John Gushue >click to read< 08:50
Coast Guard Ends Search for Isaac Kettle, Missing St. Lawrence Fisherman
The Coast Guard officially wound down its search for the last victim of a boating tragedy in Placentia Bay last evening. Officials said after an intensive search spanning 650 nautical miles, they believe there will no longer be any reasonable chance of survival for the fourth crew member. Three bodies were recovered from the ocean off St. Lawrence on Tuesday. The incident has now been turned over to the RCMP as a missing persons case. The Coast Guard is thanking the many volunteers who joined the search effort, and they send their condolences to the loved ones of all four crew members aboard the Sarah Anne and the entire community of St. Lawrence. >click to read< 08:18
Fishermen lost off St. Lawrence remembered as ‘the finest kind of people’
Family and friends of three fishermen whose bodies were recovered off the coast of St. Lawrence, and one still missing at sea, are remembering them as kind and hard-working people. The search for family friend Isaac Kettle, believed to be in his early 30s, will end at 8:45 p.m. NT, according to the coast guard. All four men went missing in the mouth of Placentia Bay, off the southeast coast of Newfoundland,,, When they were not back before 8 
p.m. that evening, a search and rescue mission began and the Canadian Coast Guard was called.,, Eric Reeves, a fisherman of 30 years, joined in the search for his friends. Around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, he said, he found some items from the boat floating in the water. “We found a coffee mug belong to the skipper’s son and his name was wrote on it, and then we knew there was some tragedy happened,” said Reeves. “When you find something that you don’t want to find, I’ll tell ya, it’s heartbreaking.” >click to read< 18:13
St. Lawrence family, residents devastated by deaths of well known fishermen whom perished at sea
Eileen Norman broke down in tears as she spoke about the three St. Lawrence men, her family members who perished at sea. She was referring to her brother-in-law, Ed Norman, 67, his son Scott Norman, 35, and his nephew Jody Norman, 42, whose bodies were recovered Tuesday morning from the frigid waters off the coast of the Burin Peninsula on the province’s south coast. As of The Telegram’s deadline, one man was still missing, Isaac Kettle, who is said to be in his early 30s. The four men left St. Lawrence in Ed Norman’s 36-foot fishing vessel, Sara Anne, about 12:30 a.m. Monday to go crab fishing, Eileen Norman said. >click to read< 09:25
UPDATE: Bodies of three St. Lawrence fishermen recovered, one fisherman still missing off Newfoundland’s south coast
The Canadian Coast Guard has recovered the body of a third fisherman missing off the coast of St. Lawrence, and crews are still searching for one other missing man. One man’s body was found at 4:15 a.m. local time on Tuesday, the second man’s body was found at 11:15 a.m., and the third man’s body was found at 11:40 a.m. Crews continue their search and rescue mission this afternoon. Five fishing boats are involved in the search, along with the coast guard vessel Ann Harvey, a Cormorant helicopter and a Hercules aircraft. >click to read< 14:24
One man still missing, search and rescue efforts continue – The bodies of Ed Norman, 67, his son Scott, 35, and his nephew Jody, 42, have been recovered off the province’s south coast following a marine accident that occurred after the men, along with an Isaac Kettle left the Burin Peninsula community’s harbour at 12:30 a.m. Monday. Kettle, thought to be in his early 30s, is still missing and search and rescue efforts to locate him are continuing. >click to read< 14:29
