Four fishermen escaped tragedy Friday after their boat began taking on water and then sank off the coast of Cape Breton.
The Lady Angele left Cheticamp, N.S. early Thursday but it failed to return to port. It had 8,000 pounds of crab onboard and was 20 kilometres from shore when the crew discovered they were in trouble.
“We started noticing that the boat was sinking in the back a bit, more than it usually is,” says skipper Danny LeBlanc.
He says bilge pumps and bailing couldn’t handle the amount of water that was filling the stern.
“I believe that is what saved us, is not one of us panicked,” says LeBlanc. “Everyone kept their cool. Everybody did what they had to do.”
The crew declared an SOS. The Canadian Coast Guard was called and the sinking boat’s life-raft was deployed.
The crew members climbed over the side of the ship and into the raft. It was mid-afternoon as the crew watched their boat sink.
“It’s not a good feeling inside,” says Eric Chiasson when asked what it was like to have to abandon ship. “You think of everything. The first thing you think of is your family.”
Chiasson also believe staying calm and composed during the ordeal was important.
“We kept our cool and we did every part we had to do and everything went alright,” he says. “The important thing is that we are home safe and sound.”
A coast guard cutter based in the area for the fishing season was on the scene and performed the rescue less than an hour after the distress call came in.
"It was a relatively close call, and I would wager that it was a matter of quick decision-making and responsible decision-making that potentially saved the lives of these crew members," says Major Martell Thompson of the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre.
The crew plans to borrow another boat and resume fishing next week – this time, with survival suits. They had only lifejackets onboard when they were forced to abandon ship.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Randy MacDonald
