Former Katmai crewmen, assisting sailors testify
SEATTLE -- The question of safety on board the Seattle-based fishing boat that sank into the Bering Sea is under heavy scrutiny.
The hearing began last week in Anchorage with survivors testifying how the Katmai went down Oct. 22 in heavy seas off the coast of Alaska. Seven of the 11 crewmen were lost and four rescued by a Coast Guard helicopter from Kodiak.
The vessel was carrying a full load of cod when it ran into trouble.
On Monday Martin Morin, co-owner of the Katmai, shared e-mails from the captain detailing the weather prior to the sinking.
"'We had some winds coming up that could be 45 to 50 and gusting to 70,"' he read.
The Katmai also corresponded with a nearby boat via e-mail, one of which described the weather as a nightmare. Another said the Katmai had lost steering.
The first mate on another boat, the Courageous, testified by phone about the weather conditions of that fateful day. Reynaldo Rubalcaua said he and the other crew members of the Courageous moved into position and tried to wait out the storm.
When asked whether he was surprised that the Katmai did not take a similar action, Rubalcaua said, "most definitely."
After the Katmai began taking on water, crew members of the Courageous helped rescuers.
"We retrieved one body," said Rubalcaua.
That man, he said, was in a survival suit. Rubalcaua and his crew members also found a personal flotation device, an empty survival suit and a partially-inflated life raft.
"Based on what we see, the raft did not have its equipment; didn't have its inflation bottle," Commander Rob McClellan said.
The Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation questioned former crew members of the sunken vessel.
Former crewman Alex Vigil said he saw a large crack in the hull earlier this year.
"I got off the vessel after we got to Adak," he said. "I knew something wasn't right so I got off myself."
A former Katmai engineer, Phillip Stromstad, criticized some of Capt. Henry Blake's decisions during Stromstad's time aboard the vessel in July. He also said Monday he felt the stability plan for the Katmai was in error and might cause the vessel to ride poorly in the water.
Investigators were planning to hear from the Seattle company that sold the life rafts to the Katmai.
The investigation aims to find answers to three questions: what caused the Katmai's sinking, did the boat have adequate safety equipment and could any of the deaths have been prevented.
On Friday, members of the marine board look at a vessel at Seattle's Fishermen's Terminal similar to the Katmai. The Miss Amy was built in the same year and has a similar design.
The hearing began last week in Anchorage with survivors testifying how the Katmai went down Oct. 22 in heavy seas off the coast of Alaska. Seven of the 11 crewmen were lost and four rescued by a Coast Guard helicopter from Kodiak.
The vessel was carrying a full load of cod when it ran into trouble.
On Monday Martin Morin, co-owner of the Katmai, shared e-mails from the captain detailing the weather prior to the sinking.
"'We had some winds coming up that could be 45 to 50 and gusting to 70,"' he read.
The Katmai also corresponded with a nearby boat via e-mail, one of which described the weather as a nightmare. Another said the Katmai had lost steering.
The first mate on another boat, the Courageous, testified by phone about the weather conditions of that fateful day. Reynaldo Rubalcaua said he and the other crew members of the Courageous moved into position and tried to wait out the storm.
When asked whether he was surprised that the Katmai did not take a similar action, Rubalcaua said, "most definitely."
After the Katmai began taking on water, crew members of the Courageous helped rescuers.
"We retrieved one body," said Rubalcaua.
That man, he said, was in a survival suit. Rubalcaua and his crew members also found a personal flotation device, an empty survival suit and a partially-inflated life raft.
"Based on what we see, the raft did not have its equipment; didn't have its inflation bottle," Commander Rob McClellan said.
The Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation questioned former crew members of the sunken vessel.
Former crewman Alex Vigil said he saw a large crack in the hull earlier this year.
"I got off the vessel after we got to Adak," he said. "I knew something wasn't right so I got off myself."
A former Katmai engineer, Phillip Stromstad, criticized some of Capt. Henry Blake's decisions during Stromstad's time aboard the vessel in July. He also said Monday he felt the stability plan for the Katmai was in error and might cause the vessel to ride poorly in the water.
Investigators were planning to hear from the Seattle company that sold the life rafts to the Katmai.
The investigation aims to find answers to three questions: what caused the Katmai's sinking, did the boat have adequate safety equipment and could any of the deaths have been prevented.
On Friday, members of the marine board look at a vessel at Seattle's Fishermen's Terminal similar to the Katmai. The Miss Amy was built in the same year and has a similar design.