Tuesday, September 8, 2015

3 fishermen dead after fishing boat Caledonian sinks off Vancouver Island coast



Three dead after commercial fishing boat capsizes off Tofino





CTV Vancouver: 3 dead after boat capsizes


The accident occurred in the waters 30 miles west of Tofino, near Estevan Point.


The Canadian Press
Published Monday, September 7, 2015 10:09AM PDT
Last Updated Monday, September 7, 2015 1:00PM PDT


VICTORIA - Three men are dead after a commercial fishing boat capsized near Tofino, B.C.

A fourth man was rescued from a life raft early Sunday morning, said Lt. (Navy) Nicole Murillo with the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre (JRCC).

The crew was hauling in a net when the ship listed, Murillo said.



Photos



An image of the capsized commercial fishing vessel Caledonian before the accident. (Eric Sorenson/MarineTraffic.com).

“They tried to correct it but unfortunately, the ship capsized and subsequently sunk.”

The company that owns the 33 metre dragger notified the Coast Guard after crews failed to check-in around 10 p.m. Saturday night.

The Coast Guard sent out three vessels and an aircraft, and found the survivor in a life raft around 1:30 a.m.

He was taken on to a cruise ship that had a full medical facility, and was transferred to hospital in Victoria Sunday afternoon.

The bodies of two of the fishermen were found Sunday morning.

Coast Guard boats and a helicopter, and several fishing vessels searched for the fourth man Sunday, and eventually found his body.

Murillo said early reports indicate the survivor was the only crew member wearing a life jacket.

The boat was fishing in a remote area about 55 kilometres off of the west coast of Vancouver Island.

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By Vancity Buzz Staff
6:05 PM PDT, Sun September 06, 2015

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Image: Marine Traffic / Google Maps

The Canadian Coast Guard has confirmed that three fishermen have perished just off the coast of Vancouver Island in Nootka Sound, just north of Tofino, after their fishing vessel sunk.

A total of four men on the vessel Caledonian were reported to be missing on Sunday morning. It is believed the vessel experienced issues late Saturday night at approximately 10 p.m. when it began to pull in its net haul.

The bodies of two men were recovered by a Coast Guard vessel and a third body was discovered by a Cormorant helicopter.

The fourth man on the vessel was found alive later in the day, with officials indicating he likely survived because he was the only fisherman on the vessel to wear a life vest.

The 1975-built vessel has a length of 26 metres, breadth of nine metres, and weighs 260 gross tons.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has issued a statement saying it has deployed an investigator to gather information and probe the incident.