Though it ventured into some of the most dangerous and choppy waters in the world, this crab boat met its match at a Seattle pier. Featured on the show Deadliest Catch, the North American is now at the bottom of the sea.
The North American, a 91-foot crab boat, sank on May 15 at a pier near Ballard Bridge. It happened on the south side of the Lake Washington Ship Canal in Seattle. What caused the crab boat to sink? Well, it sounds like we have a mystery on our hands. The U.S. Coast Guard is investigating what exactly happened. At this time, we don't know if anyone was aboard the boat at the time it sank. However, we can confirm that no one was killed or injured when the boat sank. Likewise, it doesn't appear to have harmed any sea life.
Deadliest Catch fans may remember the North American. It's one of the commercial crab boats that appears on the show. Fans will be sad to discover that it won't be appearing in any future seasons. The Coast Guard had to the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund and contracted Global Dive and Salvage. The boat has 32,500 gallons of diesel, which needs to be cleaned up and removed from the wreckage. The Coast Guard is overseeing the cleanup.
'Deadliest Catch' Boat Sinks
Divers used plug vents to prevent any further leakage into the water. They also used several layers of containment boom around the boat. Currently, the Coast Guard doesn't know how much of the oil spilt into the water. However, they did notice a sheen to the water, meaning there's definitely been a leak.
As Deadliest Catch fans may remember, Erling Skaar owned the boat. His sons Sten and John Skaar also worked for their dad on the boat. However, in July 2023, Skaar passed away. He first launched the crab company in 1975. The Coast Guard isn't revealing who currently owns the boat because the entire incident is under investigation.
They're also not revealing any details on what may have caused the Deadliest Catch ship to sink. One thing to note is that a boat just doesn't sink for no reason, especially at a dock.
