Deaths of 4 Shea Heights fishermen blamed on poor weather, no distress signals, says TSB

The decision to set out in "adverse conditions," in part, doomed the four-person crew onboard on the vessel Pop's Pride last year, according to a report by the Transportation Safety Board.

The fishermen Eugene Walsh, his son Keith Walsh, grandson Keith Walsh Jr. and family friend Bill Humby were aboard a six-metre open boat when it sank off Cape Spear on Sept. 6, 2016.

• 3 generations of 1 family involved in Cape Spear fishing tragedy

The bodies of Keith Walsh, Jr.,and BillHumby were recovered, and had life-jackets on. The othertwocrew members were not recovered from the sea and are presumed drowned.

The wind was at approximately 25 knots, or 46 km/h, and wave heights hit twometres, according to the marine investigation released Monday morning.

"[Those conditions] were beyond the normal operating conditions of the vessel [It] swamped and sank, leaving the four crew members in the water," reads the document.

It's unclear specifically how it sank, but the report suggests two scenarios:

• Significant sprayas it travelled past Blackhead
• Large wave, causing it to instantly sink

The sinking of Pop's Pride sparked a huge search and rescue effort near St. John's, with coast guard vessels and fishing boats from the community scouring the water.

'No distress signals'

Another significant contributing factor was that"no distress signals" were transmitted.

"No rescue efforts were initiated until the vessel was reported as overdue," the report said.

There were four cell phonesonboard, according to the TSB, but there was likely no time to make a call.

The vessel was not required by regulation to carry a VHF radiotelephone or EPIRB(emergency position-indicating radio beacon), since only vessels 12 metresor longer are required to have those devices.

The report also noted that the master had over 20 years of fishing experience. No safety equipment was found on board when the vessel was recovered.

TSB: consider full-season quota, not weekly

The TSB delves into why the crew, led by an experienced master, may have chosen to head out on the waters despite the bad weather.

Licence conditions require that gear in the water be recovered every 48 hours, but there are some exceptions when an extension can be approved for factors beyond the control of fishermen, according to the TSB.

"[However] this information was not contained in the licence conditions for this fishery. Therefore the master of Pop's Pride likely did not know this information," according to the report.

That 48-hour rule for recovering gear has good intentions, like fresher fish and less waste, but "there is limited consideration for situations in which attending to the gear would be unsafe, such as periods of inclement weather," the report states.

There is also a financial incentive to head out on the seas to retrieve the catch, according to the TSB, since the uncaught quota can't carry over to the next week.

The TSB says the Department of Fisheries and Oceansshould consider a quota for the whole season so fishermen wouldn't feel pressured to venture out in bad weather.

"A weekly quota leads to more trips to the fishing grounds and therefore an increased exposure to all of the risks associated with the commercial fishing industry," according to the report on the investigation.

DFOreviewing report

DFO did not respond to CBC's specific questions, stating that since the department is "currently reviewing the report's contents, it is too early to comment on the board's recommendations overall," according to a statement issued Monday afternoon.

"While variable weekly catch limits remained in place for the 2017 2J3KL Northern Cod Stewardship/By-catch fishery, [DFO] implemented specified closing dates, which removed the potential for a closure on short notice and enabled harvesters to better plan their season," the statement reads.

The department, which called the incident a "terrible tragedy," said it regularly reviews "management measures" for specific fisheries before the start of each season.

"Transport Canada participates in this process and advises upon any specific safety considerations that may need to be included in licence conditions," said DFO.

'We have to do more'

Mark Dolomount, vice-chair of the Newfoundland and Labrador Fish Harvesting Safety Association, is also weighing in on the report.

He acknowledgedthat effective communication is key to search and rescue, but insists more guidelines won't solve all the risk.

"No doubt it is a fine balance. We acknowledge, as I just said, that a strong regulatory framework that fish harvestors support and understandis key. But a regulatory framework alone is not the answer, always," Dolomount said.

"We need to have a strong safety culture in the industry that we've made a lot of progress on, but this, again, is a reminder that we have to do more."

He said Transport Canada and DFO signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) several years ago to collaborate more closely on fishing vessel safety.

"To date I'm not sure that they've collaborated as well, or as often or as effectively as they could have or should have, but we have to start somewhere," Dolomount said.