TSB says harsh weather, lack of contingency plan contributed to fatal vessel sinking

A tragic incident involving a fishing vessel near Canso, N.S., in 2022 has been attributed to severe weather conditions and a lack of contingency planning for towing disabled vessels, as per the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.

The board recently released its investigative report on the rescue operation of the Mucktown Girl, a halibut boat that experienced electrical issues and lost power while located approximately 160 kilometres southeast of Canso on March 11, 2022. The vessel, carrying five crew members, contacted the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, prompting the Canadian Coast Guard ship Jean Goodwill to respond the following morning.

Due to an impending storm, the decision was made to tow the Mucktown Girl towards Mulgrave, N.S. However, the towing operation failed after six hours due to high towing speed, harsh weather conditions, and inadequate towing arrangements. Unfortunately, there were no contingency plans in place to re-establish the tow or evacuate the crew from the vessel.

As weather conditions deteriorated on March 13, 2022, with winds reaching 90 kilometres per hour and waves up to 10 metres high, the Mucktown Girl began taking on water. The crew members were forced to abandon ship into a life-raft without notifying the coast guard, leading to two coast guard members sustaining injuries during the rescue operation.

While four of the crew members managed to board the Jean Goodwill, one crew member was swept away and later pronounced dead after being recovered by a search and rescue helicopter.

The investigation highlighted the importance of comprehensive contingency planning for towing disabled vessels, emphasizing the need to minimize risks to both rescuers and crew members. In this case, the lack of contingency plans resulted in the crew remaining on the drifting vessel amid worsening conditions.

Furthermore, breakdowns in communication between the Mucktown Girl and the Jean Goodwill hindered efforts to safely transfer crew members from the life-raft to the coast guard vessel.

The fisherman who tragically lost his life in the incident was identified as Jeremy Hart of Windsor Junction, N.S. He spent five hours in the ocean before being rescued. Moving forward, the coast guard will be reviewing its towing equipment, search and rescue training procedures, and exercise standards to prevent such incidents in the future.