Rough seas for tough mariners

Deadliest catch : respect to these guys working in terrific conditions

From AssociatedContent

Previous week (on Friday), Reuters reports that U.S. Coast Guard cutters and helicopters rushed to assist a disabled freighter adrift in the Bering Sea with 20 crew members aboard and carrying a cargo of oilseeds and fuel.

The 738-foot, Liberian-flagged vessel Golden Seas, owned by Paragon Shipping Inc of Greece, alerted the Coast Guard before dawn of a main engine failure in rough seas about 70 miles north of Adak in the Aleutian Islands chain, Coast Guard officials said.

Two Coast Guard cutters and two MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter rescue teams were dispatched to aid the crippled vessel, which was drifting to the southeast at roughly 2 miles per hour.

No accidents, spills or injuries were reported, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Jon-Paul Rios.
But weather was bad with gale-force winds and 28-foot seas, he said.

The ship was loaded in Vancouver, British Columbia, before embarking on a voyage for the Middle East, said Darrell Wilson, a spokesman for the vessel's management company, All Seas Marine.
The freighter apparently was traveling a busy shipping corridor known as the Great Circle Route, which extends from the West Coast of North America through the Aleutian Islands to Alaska and on to Asia.

"They had some type of engine problem. They have not lost all power," Wilson said. "They have limited power, but it's just not enough out there in these weather conditions."
The route is known to be treacherous due to stormy weather, icy seas and high winds.

Remember the Deadliest Catch serie from Discovery Network.
Deadliest Catch is a documentary/reality television series produced for the Discovery Channel since 2005.

It portrays the real life events aboard fishing vessels in the Bering Sea during the Alaskan king crab and C. opilio crab fishing seasons.

The Aleutian Islands port of Dutch Harbor (located in Unalaska, Alaska - see Marine GeoGarage-) is the base of operations for the fishing fleet.
The port of Unalaska/Dutch Harbor is the main port and field base for the storied Bering Sea king crab fishery.
Dutch Harbor has also been the largest fisheries port in the United States, in terms of volume of seafood caught, for nearly every year since 1981.
Until 2000, it also ranked first in terms of the dollar value of its catch; since 2000, however, the port of New Bedford, Massachusetts, has outranked Dutch Harbor in that category

The show's name derives from the inherent high risk of injury or death associated with the work.
The Deadliest Catch on the Discovery Channel is about life and death, fighting the elements, the bonds that are formed among men that put their lives in danger while trying to make a living.

The show itself centers around four main commercial fishing vessels; the Cornelia Marie, Wizard, Northwestern, Time Bandit and the crews that man them.
On occasion the show will have other vessels as well.

Alaskan crab fishing is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, so dangerous that the U.S. Coast Guard is on stand by when the commercial boats are out.
The vessels brave the icy waters of the Bering Sea in search of King Crab in October and the C.Opilio Crab in January.
An average of one fisherman loses their life each week during the season with 80% of the deaths due to drowning or hypothermia.

Here are some reasons to watch this show:

1. Adventure is the number one reason to watch 'The Deadliest Catch'. The icy cold waters of January or the gale wind enforced waters in October are both considered hazardous season's. Either way they bring danger and adventure to the person watching at home.
2. Appreciation of the price of C.Opilio Crab and King Crab. Every season lives are lost bringing in the catch. Think about it the next time someone complains about the price of Alaskan crab.
3. Many of the crew members are related and the ones that are not still have a powerful bond. Being physical relatives and spiritual brother's gives strong ties to the crew members. Out in the Bering Sea it is just them against the sea and the elements.
4. Danger is all around the cast and crew of 'The Deadliest Catch'. Anything can happen from a ship sinking as in Season 1 when the Big Valley sank losing 5 of its 6 member crew, to someone getting knock overboard with the heavy crab traps.
5. Competition from ship to ship is another good reason as it would seem fishermen are always competing to see who is best.

Watch the 'The Deadliest Catch' on the Discovery Channel.

Links :

• CNN : Cargo ship disabled off remote Alaska islands to reach harbor Tuesday
• Discovery : 60' rogue wave that smashes into the side of a crabbing boat in the Bering Sea
• Discovery : Deadliest Catch - Bering Sea Power, Redemption Day