The commercial squid seiner Net Effect capsizes.
Merit McCrea
WON Staff Writer
VENTURA – On December 13th the 65-foot squid seiner Net Effect was just outside of Ventura Harbor when it capsized and rolled over just before 10 a.m., just 100 yards off the Harbor entrance. Sea conditions were relatively calm at the time. The crew of 4 was being rescued already by the fishing vessel Illusion Sun, when authorities arrived.
The VC Star reported one crew suffered serious injury while another had moderate injuries and both were taken to the hospital. The other two crew were rescued from the water and later released without injury.
By the 19th the Net Effect had been righted and towed back to the harbor, after drifting bottom up to a position about ¾ of a mile out. Friedman Adventures, Phillip Friedman posted a video of the vessel being brought back into the harbor.
John Fuqua, a local partyboat owner and skipper said the word dockside was they had slack water partially filling the hold after unloading.
Running out of the harbor after unloading, to flush out the holds and clean up is a common practice. When a large hold is partially filled with water that is free to flow side-to-side (“slack water”) it causes the vessel to loose stability.
This can happen to any boat partially filled with water allowed to slosh freely within the hull, as well as one where the load can shift in heavy weather. Keep it dry and tie it down.
Efren Guillen was part of the crew of 4 aboard. He said “There was 3 men and 1 woman on board… we all made it out. But it was the scariest day of my life.. it rolled in 3 seconds.”