Les Jones: "The Deadliest Catch"

June 12, 2005

A&E > "The Deadliest Catch"

Just finished watching this series on the Discovery Channel that covers the 2005 crab fishing season. Commercial crab fishing is consistenly one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. In large part that's because the boats are racing the clock to catch as much crab as they can before the fleet limit is reached and the fish and game authorities close the season.

The producers gave it a reality TV flavor by tracking the stories and catches of a half dozen boats, but the danger, tension, and sleeplessness provide the drama, while the ticking clock of the season closure drives the story. They also did a great job of illustrating the dangers of the job with stories of past disasters. They show home footage of a burning fishing boat, and two shipwrecked survivors of a vessel lost in a storm.

The producers filmed this show in the nick of time. This was the last year for derby-style crab fishing. Now the catch limits will be pre-determined for each boat before the season begins.

Posted by lesjones

Comments

When I was in the Coast Guard my team conducted many boardings of commercial fishing vessels. I never went aboard any crab boats which without a doubt are the most dangerous. But I observed that fishing in general, whether lobstermen, crabbers or the open water guys -- is one of the riskiest and most thankless jobs around.

Those guys worked in far worse conditions than we did, and for very little pay. I did the math one day (12 years ago, so don't ask me to remember) and I recall thinking "Dang, how can these guys even afford the boat?"

I can't so much as go to Captain D's without thinking about how much risk and work went into my little fish & chips.

Posted by: Chris Range at June 14, 2005