'We need him back home where he belongs'
Wife, mother of missing St. Lawrence fisherman Isaac Kettle plead for government to continue search
Kerri Lynn Kettle knows she won’t see her husband alive again, but she still needs him home.
“I just want him back with me. We need him back home where he belongs,” she told The Telegram Thursday, her voice quivering as she held back tears. “I need to touch him, to feel him.
“We really need closure. They need to bring his body home.”
Isaac Kettle, 33, was one of four St. Lawrence fishermen who were aboard the Sarah Anne, a 36-foot fishing vessel, which set out from St. Lawrence early Monday morning to go crab fishing.
When they didn’t return later in the day, the Canadian Coast Guard was notified and an extensive search began.
Working with the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Halifax, the Coast Guard tasked multiple aircraft and vessels to the search area and continued to search overnight, while numberous other vessels from the community of St. Lawrence also set out to look for the men.
On Tuesday, the bodies of 67-year-old Ed Norman, his son, Scott Norman, 35, and his nephew, Jody Norman, 42, were recovered from the frigid waters of Placentia
Bay, off the coast of the Burin Peninsula on the province’s south coast. Kettle is still missing.
“I was hoping and praying to God they’d find him,” said Kerri Lynn Kettle, adding that their sons, ages six and nine, are trying to be strong for her. “It’s been hell. It just feels so unreal. It’s like I’m still waiting for him to walk through the door.
“I think I’m just numb.”
She and Isaac were together for 18 years and married for two years.
The Canadian Coast Guard indicated that as of 8:45 p.m. Wednesday following an intensive search, spanning 650 nautical miles, the maritime search and rescue operation was called off. Noting there is no possibility of survival given the time that has passed, a spokesperson said the incident has been turned over to the RCMP as a missing persons case.
It was devastating news to the Kettle family.
“I couldn't believe it,” said Kettle. “He's out there and they need to find him. … We need to get the government on board, get the ball rolling and get that boat hauled up.”
Isaac Kettle's mother, Aundriette Kettle, was shocked when the Coast Guard called off the search.
“I think it's ridiculous. I mean, 48 hours and calling it off? That was it,” said Kettle, adding that she called Premier Dwight Ball's office, other politicians and the police to plead with them to continue the search.
“We need my son home.” She believes Isaac is with the boat, which, she said, has to be in the area where they were designated to fish.
She said her son was a volunteer firefighter, was well known and respected in the community, and deserves to have a final resting place in his home.
“Everyone knew my son. He was friends with everyone in the harbour. He did everything to help everyone. If someone was out there missing today, he'd be the first one there to help. If someone was lost, he would help, no questions asked. If someone needed something, he gave it to them.”
Now, she said, it's time to help him and the family.
“He needs to be found,” she said.
“We need him back, one way or another.”