We found out over the weekend that the 184 foot, F/V Alaska Ranger sunk about 120 miles west of Dutch Harbor early Sunday morning. Our prayers go out to the families. One of the four people who lost their lives was the Captain, Eric Peter Jacobsen, 65, of Lynnwood, Wash

KIRO TV in Seattle interviewed the Captains adult children. News story here.

They said there must have been something terribly wrong for a boat of that size to sink and they would like to know the details. Yes, I agree. The weather was not rough and something strange must have happened for them to take on water so fast. Usually, when a boat takes on water - there is enough time to be rescued before having to abandon ship.

The F/V Alaska Ranger was a factory trawler and not one of the fishing boat in the F/V Cornelia Marie crab fishing fleet. This was a large vessel with 47 people on board. It drags a large net (trawl) from the stern of the vessel to catch its fish. Once caught, the fish are processed and frozen right there aboard the ship. These guys stay out at sea for along time and it’s not an easy job.

More details can be found here.