Mowi crew rescued from sea after workboat starts sinking
Three crew on board a Mowi workboat off the coast of Gildeskål, Northern Norway were rescued from the water yesterday morning after the vessel started sinking rapidly.
According to reports in the media the boat, the Stolt Pegasus, began taking on water so quickly that the crew didn’t have time to put on immersion suits. They issued a mayday message and jumped into the water wearing just their standard clothing and life jackets.
Without immersion suits, survival time in the 10°C water was around two hours.
Cold but safe
Witnesses on land saw what happened, and local vessels began a search for the three people, who came out of the sea cold but in good condition, according to the Northern Norway Rescue Service.
Knut Val and Silje Rokkan, who were aboard a boat belonging to Val’s company Arctic Cruise, rescued the crew, Bodø-based news outlet Avisa Nordland reported.
The couple were about to make coffee when the mayday message came out on Kystradio Nord.
Clear voice
“The way it was said, I realised that it was urgent. The voice was so clear and distinct that I also understood that they could not be far away,” Val told Avida Nordland.
“We spotted the boat that had taken on a lot of seawater. It went in a circle. At first it was somewhat unclear whether there were people on board, but gradually it became clear that they had gone into the sea.”
After turning the boat, they saw the people lying in the sea and were able to pull them onboard.
‘They did a great job’
Mariell Bakklund, rescue leader for the Main Rescue Centre Northern Norway, praised the response from Val and Rokkan.
“We are very pleased that boats go to assistance and rescue people at sea. That’s what saves lives,” she told Avida Nordland. “It is often the case that the nearest resources are far away. This was an honourable effort by the two. They did a great job, and we are very grateful.”
The Stolt Pegasus has reportedly been recovered.
Mowi communications manaer Eivind Nævdal-Bolstad said: “We are very happy that our employees are doing well after this dramatic experience. We are in dialogue with the rescue services to evaluate and find the cause of this incident.”
