Gone Fishin' : Family fishing outing becomes close encounter
Even on the calmest days there is always an element of danger out on the water. For the most cautious boater or the most experienced, sometimes the difference between a close call and tragedy comes down to a little bit of luck.
Tom Robinson nets a striped bass Nelson Sigelman hooked on light tackle, while casting a bubblegum colored Sluggo at Middle Ground. Photo by Phil Cronin of Capawock charters
For Alley Moore, out fishing with his two young daughters in a 19-foot Mako, and commercial fisherman Francis "Sandy" Fisher Sr. and two crewmen aboard a 25-foot Sea Hawk, luck was a matter of a few feet and a few degrees of angle.
Last Saturday, the wind dropped and the rain stopped. It was a beautiful day to be out on the water. Tom Robinson and I fished Middle Ground on the rising tide in the morning. Squid pursued by striped bass were popping out of the water, providing plenty of visual excitement and occasional hookups.
The water was flat calm, and the sun broke through the clouds and haze with enough regularity to mock the weatherman.
Later in the day, we went looking for the sea bass. I pressed Tom to fish in the channel off West Chop, something he was reluctant to do because of boat traffic. I told him not to worry because it was calm, and other boats could clearly see us.
When I got home, my wife said Alley Moore, a friend and frequent fishing and hunting partner, had called with a harrowing tale. His story is a cautionary for all fishermen that the unexpected can occur at any time on the calmest days and in the most familiar waters.
The report Alley filed with Edgartown harbormaster Charlie Blair for the Massachusetts Environmental Police tells his side of the story:
"On Saturday, June 20, at approximately 3 pm, my two daughters, Emily, age 10, and Nina, age 6 and I were out fishing in our 17-foot Mako center console about 2 miles due east of Big Bridge off State Beach, Edgartown.
"We started to troll as we headed home to Oak Bluffs. Emily immediately hooked a large bluefish, and spent 10 minutes reeling it in. I noticed a commercial fishing boat pulling pots about a quarter mile away. There were no other boats around. Visibility was excellent and the wind was light. Our engine was turned off, and we were drifting while the bluefish was landed. Once the bluefish was in the boat, Emily asked if I could take a photograph of her with the fish. As I was looking for the camera, I noticed that the commercial boat was up and running on plane at a high rate of speed. It was about 100 yards away and coming straight at us. We were perpendicular to each other.
"Since it was a commercial boat, I assumed, though it was going fast, it would pull around us. At about 70 yards off, I started waving to get the attention of the captain, and at 50 yards, the same thing. At about 35 yards, I could see through their cockpit window.
"There was absolutely no one to be seen steering the vessel. Their boat never slowed down. I waved and yelled. There was no time to start our boat. A second or two later, their boat rammed us at full speed. A wave of bow wake hit us, then, a split second later, their boat hit ours.
"The commercial boat, since it was up on plane, hit our leeward gunwale about 3 to 4 feet in front of the center console, rode up on top of our boat, destroyed the bow rail, drove on through, smashing our boat out of the way.
"Right before contact, my daughters and I were on the starboard side, tucked next to the center console. We were all drenched, and the two girls were thrown to the deck. They were scared and shocked but luckily otherwise uninjured. Once I saw they were OK, I jumped to the bow of the boat and started screaming at the commercial boat.
"The first I saw of them after the impact, they had slowed their boat down and held up about 60 yards off. There were three men aboard, and they were all in the stern of the boat with their fishing gear, which included traps.
"They came a bit closer and after some time and yelling on my part gave me their information, reluctantly. Their boat is named "Finding Nemo." I asked for the owner's name, 30 seconds later, they came back with Sandy Fisher. Phone number, same thing, they talked amongst themselves, then gave me a number. They stayed about 30 yards off. I told them that everyone aboard my boat was OK, and they quickly steamed off. No apologies."
Ally contacted the Coast Guard when he got home. A crew from Station Woods Hole, which covers the eastern end of the Island, arrived to conduct an investigation. A First District Coast Guard spokesman told me Wednesday he could provide no details because the incident remains under investigation.
Alley is a good friend. He is not the sort of person to exaggerate or fly off the handle. I know that he was pretty shaken up by the accident, mostly by the thought of how catastrophic it might have been.
Sandy Fisher and his wife Lori came by to speak with me on Tuesday. Sandy is an experienced commercial fisherman who knows those waters well. I am told that he is a hard-working guy.
He did not have much to say. He spoke in clipped sentences and was clearly uncomfortable talking about the accident. How did it happen? He referenced miscommunication, taking the open water for granted and assuming that another crewmember was keeping watch.
Sandy said he wanted to apologize at the time but Alley was screaming and yelling and too upset to listen. He did not even know his name until he heard it from me.
The bottom line is that Sandy let his guard down on the water. There is not a recreational or commercial fisherman who hasn't, but most times there are no serious consequences.
My guess is that Sandy feels terrible and embarrassed about what happened and that he is grateful the girls were not hurt. Who said what is not important.
I do know that what happened, a possible tragedy, was a near miss, and for that we can all be thankful.
Feds seek comment on swordfish, tuna fishing
NOAA's Fisheries Service is seeking comments on potential changes in the way commercial and recreational fishermen fish the U.S. quotas for swordfish and bluefin tuna in the Atlantic.
These species are managed internationally, with each country assigned a quota. U.S. fishermen are competing with fishermen from countries where folks do not give a hoot about ecosystem management or reducing bycatch of turtles and other species.
"We've heard a number of ideas from constituents and we want to broaden the conversation to include recreational fishermen, environmental organizations and the general public on how best to manage these valuable highly migratory fish species," Jim Balsiger, acting NOAA assistant administrator for NOAA's Fisheries Service, said. In addition to considering catch shares and bycatch reduction, some of the proposals that will be discussed include: an industry request to allow more bluefin tuna to be landed that have been incidentally caught in longline fishing gear; a proposal to allow approximately 5,000 commercial tuna fishermen who use rod and reel to land swordfish at low catch levels; an industry request to lower the commercial minimum size for bluefin tuna from 73 to 65 inches.
There will be a public meeting on Monday, June 29, at the Radisson Hotel on Plymouth Harbor. Public comments on bluefin tuna fishery issues will close June 30, while comments on all other issues, including swordfish, will remain open until Aug. 31. For more information about the public comment process or the bluefin tuna quota,00 go to: www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/.
