Keep the Water on the Outside of the Boat
Life saving non-fiction by Russell Newberry

As seen on " Dangerous Red" wine labels

I was in my bunk when the wave hit. My bunk aboard the boat was a side-to bunk, meaning that I lay my head toward the port side(left) and my feet lay toward the starboard(right). This is a little different from the traditional bed arrangements on most vessels whose bunks lay from bow to stern. It was 0800 (8 am) on January 15, 2005, four hours before the start of the opilio crab season off the coast of Alaska in the Bering Sea. The boat had been rolling in the heavy seas for 48 hours as we chugged to the crabbing grounds. We had ten thousand pounds of hanging bait(whole frozen codfish) in nine 4' x 4' x 4' cardboard boxes, stacked 3 high on the port rail towards the bow. To compensate for the weight, we transfered enough fuel from the port side to the starboard side to level the boat. This is called giving the boat an 'even keel'.

The forty foot rogue wave came out of nowhere. When it hit on the port side, it had enough force to break the lashings on the bait. Ten thousand pounds of bait then slides to the starboard side creating a 35 degree list that puts the starboard rail under the water.

The wave stands me up in my bunk. Of course now its a sailors worse nightmare. I bolt out of my bunk and hit the wheelhouse stairs, one foot on the side wall(bulkhead) and one on a step because they have turned into one with the listing of the boat.

As I climb to the wheelhouse I hear the Captain say, "Wow, I've never seen the boat do this before!"

I immediately go for my survival suit and pull out all for the rest of the crew who are now climbing to the wheelhouse. The boat seems to be 'holding' its own for the moment and we decide to try and save her. The Captain cococts a scheme to use the crane as an outrigger. The crane is on the port side of the boat so we tie three crab pots together and lift them over the port rail and swing them out as far as possible to creat the 'outrigger'. It works well enough to pull the starboard rail out of the water, which allows us to throw all of our hanging bait over the side. This, coupled with the transfering of fuel from starboard to port, brings the boat to an even keel again. We win the battle this time. Unfortunately during this same time frame the fishing vessel Big Valley does not and she sinks with all hands, with only one survivor. May they rest in peace...