Close to midnight on March 11, 2022, the halibut fishing vessel Mucktown Girl experienced electrical problems 87.5 nautical miles southeast of Canso, Nova Scotia while steaming back to port to offload their catch ahead of a forecasted storm.
The crew of five made a call to the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, which issued a maritime assistance request broadcast, but received no response. The JRCC then tasked the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) vessel Jean Goodwill to assist, which departed from Sydney, Nova Scotia at 12:29 a.m.
By 9:13 a.m., the Jean Goodwill reached the site of the Mucktown Girl. Over the course of their nine-hour voyage, the Coast Guard fitted a 212-metre tow line to a 90-metre mooring line in preparation for a towing operation.
With the vessel inoperable, the master of Mucktown Girl requested to be towed as fast as possible to avoid the oncoming storm. By 9:35, a towing line was connected from the main deck bollard of the Jean Goodwill to the bollard of the Mucktown Girl. Towing operations began at eight knots and increased to nine knots before the towed vessel began to yaw, after which the towing speed remained at eight knots for the next five hours.
By 3:55 p.m., a combination of high towing speed, harsh weather conditions and the towing arrangement caused the tow to fail.
The captain of the vessel radioed the Jean Goodwill to inform the vessel was managing in the sea conditions and the crew remained on the vessel to weather the storm. Almost three hours later, with wind speeds increasing to 45 knots and sea swells reaching 4.5 metres, the master of the fishing vessel discussed reconnecting the towline by attaching a sling to the bow of the ship, but concluded the measure would further damage the 40-foot vessel.
By the morning of March 13, weather conditions deteriorated, with waves reaching eight to 10 metres and winds blowing 90 kilometres an hour amid heavy rain and dense fog. With the vessel starting to take on water, the crew donned immersion suits and abandoned ship.
At 6:30 a.m., crew members of the Coast Guard vessel observed the life raft with the five fish harvesters inside attached to the Mucktown Girl. 11 minutes later, a crew member of the fishing vessel cut the painter attaching the life raft to the vessel. It was around this time that one of the crew noted that water had entered his immersion suit.
The Jean Goodwill then attempted to position itself close to the life raft to allow the crew to access the scramble net, but a large wave caused the ship to roll more than 30 degrees, causing a crew member in the wheelhouse to fall and injure themselves and another on the main deck to injure themselves falling against the inner bulwark.
At 6:51 a.m., the Spindrift was dispatched from the Louisbourg, N.S. CCG station to assist alongside a Cormorant search and rescue helicopter from Greenwood, N.S.
Seven minutes later, with the Jean Goodwill positioned about five metres from the life raft, one crew member jumped into the water. After several attempts to climb the scramble net, he was brought aboard with help from the CCG crew. 20 minutes later, at 7:26 a.m., a second crew member jumped into the water and made it up the scramble net with assistance.
By 7:28 a.m., with the Coast Guard vessel repositioned, the next two crew members jumped into the water without instruction simultaneously. The first grabbed on to the Jacob’s ladder while the other grabbed the scramble net, but both were thrown back into the sea by a wave.
The master of the Mucktown Girl, who was still in the life raft, managed to grab hold of both crew members, but lost one, who floated towards the Jean Goodwill’s stern. A heaving line was then thrown to the life raft, which was tied around the other crew member to bring him aboard. By 7:58 a.m., the ship’s master was able to climb aboard the CCG vessel.
A search for the missing crew member was concluded at 12:26 p.m. by helicopter. Jeremy Hart, 35, was recovered from the water and later pronounced dead at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital.
The Transportation Safety Board (TSB) investigated the incident, where the board found that a lack a comprehensive plan for towing disabled vessels increased the risk to both rescuers and the crews of vessels under tow.
Before towing, the TSB noted that the masters of both vessels should agree on a comprehensive plan that includes the relative size of the vessels, power (bollard pull) of the towing vessel, weather and sea conditions (including forecast conditions for the duration of the tow), proximity to shore, shoals, and other hazards, intended towing speed, which is limited by the hull speed of the vessel being towed as well as the conditions, length of the towline, placement of a lookout on the towed vessel and the condition of the towed vessel.
The TSB noted that there is no Canadian regulations regarding regulations, standards or guidelines for suitable towing points on fishing vessels. Bollards, such as the one on Mucktown Girl, are generally used as tie-up points, and may not be suitable for higher forces that acted upon it while being towed.
The board also noted that the use of drugs and alcohol aboard fishing vessels has become more prevalent, which was reported aboard the Mucktown Girl before and during the voyage. Currently, Canadian law does not require drug and alcohol testing following a marine incident.
In response to the incident, the CCG made several changes. Requirements for scramble nets were changed to align with International Maritime Organization (IMO) International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) requirements, the Jean Goodwill was equipped with a rescue scoop and the towing waiver used by the CCG was updated to improve the communication surrounding the inherit risks of towing vessels and the responsibilities of the involved parties.
