The National Transportation Safety Board released their findings for the cause of the Sinking of the F/V Scandies Rose Tuesday.
A year and a half after the 130-foot crab boat capsized in foul weather south of Sutwik Island, the NTSB has decided unanimously by vote to accept the findings of the investigation report.
The report ultimate concludes that the probable cause was “the inaccurate stability instructions for the vessel, which resulted in a low margin of stability to resist capsizing, combined with the heavy asymmetric ice accumulation on the vessel due to localized wind and sea conditions that were more extreme than forecasted during the accident voyage.”
This report was the culmination of a long investigation on the part of NTSB investigators and the Coast Guard.
The report also included a list of recommendations for the Coast Guard where stability reports are concerned, notably asking for a study on icing on crab pot stacks, adding these findings and icing instructions to stability calculations, and developing an oversight program to review stability instructions for fishing vessels.
It is not immediately clear how and when these instructions will be implemented; KMXT will be following up on this story, stay tuned in the coming weeks for more information on this topic.