Fields family charged after extensive investigation into salmon setnet activity at Kodiak

Here's a press release from the Alaska State Troopers.

Public asked for help in Wind Walker case

U.S. Coast Guard investigators are appealing for further information regarding the fishing vessel Wind Walker, which sank on Dec. 1.

The bodies of two crewmembers were recovered, but three others remain missing.

NTSB to investigate Wind Walker tragedy

The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate and determine the probable cause of the deadly Wind Walker sinking, the agency announced.

The U.S. Coast Guard will lead the investigation into the casualty, which resulted in five deaths. Two bodies have been recovered.

The boat reportedly was heading out in poor weather to fish for halibut and black cod.

The NTSB has set up a webpage for the Wind Walker case.

USCG posts report on Scandies Rose tragedy

Click here.

The Scandies Rose tragedy

The U.S. Coast Guard recently concluded a lengthy public hearing into the loss of the fishing vessel Scandies Rose, which sank on New Year's Eve 2019 in heavy seas southwest of Kodiak Island.

Of the seven crewmembers aboard, two were rescued and five were never recovered.

As part of its hearing, the Coast Guard posted numerous exhibits including this subsea survey report on the sunken vessel. Readers are advised that some images and details in the report may be disturbing.

What sank the F/V Alaska Juris?

A lengthy public hearing into the sinking of the F/V Alaska Juris will begin next week in Seattle, the U.S. Coast Guard says.

The Bering Sea trawler went down in July, but all 46 people aboard were rescued safely.

A complete loss of electrical power, and then...

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada recently concluded its investigation into just how the factory trawler American Dynasty rammed a docked navy frigate last year at Victoria.

Troopers investigate Californian's death at Akutan

From the Alaska State Troopers:

Location: Akutan
Type: Death investigation
On 5/4/13 Alaska Wildlife Troopers in Dutch Harbor were advised of a death in Akutan. It was reported that Simon Gatpan, 31, of Santa Clara, Calif., was found unresponsive on the beach near the Trident cannery. Gatpan was transported to the clinic and pronounced deceased. Alaska State Troopers, including an investigator with the Alaska Bureau of Investigation, will respond from Anchorage on 5/5/13 to investigate. Gatpan's body will be sent to the medical examiner's office for an autopsy to determine cause of death.

Authorities investigate King Cove skipper's death

From the Alaska State Troopers:

Location: King Cove
Type: Death investigation
At approximately 0600 hours on 5/3/13, the King Cove Police Department notified Alaska State Troopers of a person missing from a fishing vessel. A crewmember of the F/V Taurus reported waking up at approximately 0550 hours and finding the skipper, Marvin H. Love Jr., 46, of King Cove, missing. The U.S. Coast Guard was contacted and started a response. At approximately 1154 hours, the crew of a Good Samaritan vessel, the Amanda Dawn, reported locating Love's body in the water approximately a mile from where the Taurus was moored near Belkofski. The King Cove Police Department assisted due to response distance and contacted the state medical examiner's office. Next of kin has been notified. The investigation is ongoing.

Is Congressman Young in trouble?

The House Committee on Ethics has opened an investigation into U.S. Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska.

The committee will look at "allegations that he, or persons acting on his behalf, improperly obtained, received, or accepted gifts, improperly used official resources or campaign funds for personal purposes, failed to report certain gifts on his annual Financial Disclosure Statements, and made false statements to federal officials."

Naturally, this is getting widespread attention. Here are links to a few news reports:

APRN
Anchorage Daily News
The Washington Post
The Washington Times

'Maneuvering error'

Remember back in May when a state ferry crashed into the Ocean Beauty Seafoods dock in Petersburg?

Well, a state investigation has determined the captain "made a maneuvering error."

A marine mammal whodunit

The federal fish cops are investigating the possible illegal killing of marine mammals near Skagway.

"Since January, the carcasses of two Steller sea lions and three harbor seals have been discovered," the National Marine Fisheries Service said in a press release issued yesterday.

"Of the five deceased mammals, four showed signs of head trauma, and a bullet was recovered from one harbor seal skull during a necropsy."

Read more here.

Captain of tug that hit Bligh Reef in 2009 was playing video games, U.S. Coast Guard report says

Tug Pathfinder, moored in Valdez after grounding. USCG photo

NOTE: This post has been revised to include a link to the Coast Guard investigative report, and to fix a headline error.

The captain of an oil industry tugboat that ran aground in December 2009 on Bligh Reef, spilling 6,410 gallons of diesel, was playing video games at the time of the mishap, a U.S. Coast Guard investigation has found.

The Coast Guard report says the crew of the tug Pathfinder, part of the Crowley Maritime oil tanker assist and escort fleet at Valdez, violated company policies, and the captain and second mate were unclear as to "who had the conn."

Bligh Reef is a charted navigational hazard that gained infamy when the Exxon Valdez hit it in 1989, spilling nearly 11 million gallons of crude oil.

The Coast Guard report says the captain of the Pathfinder, Ronald Eugene Monsen, had just changed course and sped up the tug, doing so without verifying the position of the vessel. He then turned to a computer to play video games, his back to the forward bridge window.

Monsen "deliberately violated company policy and used the vessel's computer to play hearts or other games, directly after changing course and speed. The Master's actions left the vessel's position unknown, other than an assumption made by the Master on the vessel's previous course," the report says.

Read the full report here.

Be advised that the document is very large and might take some time to load unless you have a blazing fast Internet connection.

Also, be aware that the document is really two reports in one. The top part looks at the role of the Coast Guard's Vessel Traffic Center in the Pathfinder incident.

Fair warning: The report is quite cumbersome to read.

Vessel owner criticized in Alaska Ranger report

Don McManman, editor of Pacific Fishing magazine, kindly sent this report on today's release of the U.S. Coast Guard investigation into the Alaska Ranger tragedy.

Nearly three years after the deadly sinking, the U.S. Coast Guard on Wednesday had brutal words for owners of the F/V Alaska Ranger.

The Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation determined the vessel sank in the Bering Sea because of the "poor material condition of the vessel," said Capt. John P. Nadeau, chairman of the board, in answer to a question from the press.

The sinking — and five deaths — "could have been prevented," Nadeau said during a Seattle news conference.

The Alaska Ranger sank in the early hours of Easter morning on March 23, 2008. The head-and-gut catcher-processor had 47 workers on board. More would have died if not for "exceptional" efforts by the Alaska Warrior, a sister ship also owned by Fishing Company of Alaska, and Coast Guard helicopter and cutter crews, Nadeau said.

Immediately after the sinking, the Coast Guard named a Marine Board of Investigation, which held hearings in Dutch Harbor, Anchorage, Seattle and Boston. During the hearings, the panel promised a full report by the end of 2008.

When asked about the delay, Nadeau said the investigation had been very complex. In addition, the original board chairman had retired in 2009.

The board's report also focused on the alternative compliance program initiated after the F/V Galaxy burned on the Bering Sea in 2002. Safety standards on vessels such as the Galaxy and Alaska Ranger were not fully addressed by federal regulations. To address such lapses, the Coast Guard and vessel owners agreed to a set of standards outside the normal government regulatory process.

The alternative compliance program did not function well in its early months, Nadeau said. It was understaffed and underfunded, he said. Even so, the Alaska Ranger failed the minimal standards enforced in early 2008, Nadeau said.

The vessel had emerged from a major refit in a Japanese shipyard only three months before it sank. But structural deficiencies aboard the Ranger "had not been addressed," said Nadeau.

The Coast Guard confirmed that flooding began in aft compartments and, while it's impossible to prove, the initial catastrophic hull failure likely was caused by weakened struts designed to support the Ranger's Kort nozzle, Nadeau said.

The vessel flooded from aft and, shortly before 4:30 a.m., rolled and sank.

After the Ranger sank, the Coast Guard was faced with a decision of whether to "ditch" the alternative compliance program, Nadeau said. But the Coast Guard commandant chose to "reinvest" in the program, tripling the number of inspectors and improving guidance, Nadeau said.

Such alternative compliance programs are central to new safety regulations imbedded in the Coast Guard authorization bill passed by Congress last fall.

To read the complete 192-page report on the sinking of the Alaska Ranger, click here.

USCG: doomed boat not properly maintained

Here's a press release summarizing U.S. Coast Guard findings in the Alaska Ranger sinking.

Coast Guard to release Alaska Ranger findings

The U.S. Coast Guard says it will hold a media briefing tomorrow afternoon in Seattle to release its investigative report into the Easter 2008 sinking of the Bering Sea trawler Alaska Ranger.

You might recall that the National Transportation Safety Board already released its conclusion on the sinking, in which four crewmen died, one remains missing and 42 were rescued.

Don Young says he's in the clear

This was posted today on U.S. Rep. Don Young's website:

A Statement From The Office Of Congressman Young

Washington D.C., Aug 4 —

Congressman Young's legal team has been notified that after full cooperation from the Congressman, the Public Integrity Section of the Department of Justice has concluded their investigation and declined prosecution of Congressman Young.