U.S. Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound, the Washington Department of Ecology, and the Islands’ Oil Spill Association (IOSA) were deployed on Saturday, November 18th, 2023, to address the sinking of the 80-foot vessel EL CAPITAN at West Sound Marina on Orcas Island. Watchstanders at Sector Puget Sound command center were…
Four Coast Guard personnel sustained injuries following the crash of their MH-60 Jayhawk during a search and rescue mission in Alaska. The Air Station Sitka based helicopter crashed on Read Island, just south of Juneau. At approximately 8 p.m. on Monday, November 13th the F/V LYDIA MARIE began taking on…
On the afternoon of November 6th, 2023, a federal court jury in Los Angeles found Jerry Nehl Boylan, the captain of the M/V CONCEPTION, guilty of gross negligence in the tragic maritime incident that claimed the lives of 34 individuals. The M/V CONCEPTION, a 75-foot vessel, caught fire on Monday,…
One of the two fishermen who disappeared nearly two weeks ago along the Washington coast has been found alive, floating in a life raft just west of Vancouver Island. According to the U.S. Coast Guard, Canadian family members spotted then rescued the man approximately 70 miles northwest of Cape Flattery…
After a two-year closure due to insufficient stock levels for fishing, the Bristol Bay red king crab fishery in Alaska is scheduled to reopen at noon on October 15, 2023. The established quota for this reopening is 2.15 million pounds, slightly less than the 2.6 million pounds set in 2020.…
Partner Nigel Stacey was recently invited to present as faculty at the Current Issues in Maritime Law 2023 Conference, organized by the Washington State Bar Association. Attendees at the conference included plaintiff and defense lawyers, as well as insurance directors from around the world. Mr. Stacey was asked to speak…
On Sunday September 11th, 2023, the U.S. Coast Guard successfully rescued the survivor of a plane crash that was located roughly 35 miles northwest of Juneau, Alaska. Personnel at the Southeast Alaska Sector Command Center initiated the deployment of an MH-60 Jayhawk aircrew from Air Station Sitka at 5:38 p.m.…
Due to disappointing population surveys once again this year, the commercial harvests of red and blue king crab in Southeast Alaska will remain closed during the 2023–24 season. Stock assessment models have revealed a biomass of just 188,899 pounds, falling short of the 200,000-pound threshold required to authorize the fisheries.…
It was a busy weekend for the U.S. Coast Guard as they responded to five rescue cases, including two unwell commercial fishermen. On August 25th, at approximately 6:20 a.m. watchstanders at the U.S. Coast Guard District 17 command center received a request for a medevac from the F/V NORTHERN EAGLE.…
It is with great sadness that we report that a crew member aboard the F/V NORTHERN EAGLE lost his life while working at sea last week. Authorities suspect the cause of death was exposure to an ammonia leak aboard the vessel. According to U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Second Class…