TSB says one boat involved in fatal collision was on autopilot

June collision claimed two lives, one of which was a Weymouth man

An investigation by the Transportation Safety Board ( TSB) says one of the boats involved in a tragic collision in Prince Edward Island this spring that claimed the lives of two men had been set to autopilot before the incident occurred.

According to a TSB summary from the investigation, on June 9, the 13- metre fishing vessel

with three people on board, departed Beach Point, Prince Edward Island, to recover lobster traps approximately 14 nautical miles to the east. Later that morning, the 11- metre fishing vessel

with five people on board, also departed Beach Point to recover lobster traps, approximately six nautical miles to the south east.

Weather conditions were favourable at the time with clear skies, winds from the southsouthwest at five to 10 knots, seas of less than 0.3 metre and unlimited visibility.

“After hauling and setting all of their traps, the master of the

set the automatic pilot to steer a westerly course toward the entrance to Beach Point Harbour. Meanwhile, the crew on the continued to haul and reset lobster traps in a generally northeast direction,” reads the TSB summary.

“They had just recovered the marker buoy on their next set of lobster traps on the starboard side and all attention was focused on this side of the vessel. As the buoy line was being recovered, the master of the

saw the heading directly toward the port side of the the TSB states. “At about the same time, the crew on board the

saw the ectly in front of them.”

The Transportation Safety Board says with no time for either vessel to manoeuvre, the

collided with the 4.8 nautical miles east-northeast of Murray Head, PEI.

The came to rest on top of the aft deck of the The TSB says as the began to sink by the stern, two of its crewmembers and one passenger climbed on board the other vessel. The remaining crewmember and passenger from the were found floating at the surface on the port side of the

as it floated free of the sinking vessel.

The crewmember and the passenger were brought on board the and another fishing vessel that had arrived on scene to assist. Both were taken to Beach Point where they were pronounced dead by first responders.

The remained partly submerged for several hours and later sank while under tow by another fishing vessel.

The undamaged.

Losing his life in the incident was Chris Melanson, of Weymouth, Digby County, who was visiting his daughter Isabelle Melanson in PEI. The other person killed was 20-year-old Montague resident Justin MacKay.

At the time of the incident the PEI community was in shock and mourning, as were family and friends of the two men who lost their lives.

GoFundMe pages were set up to help ease financial burdens in the aftermath of the tragedy. Aside from making monetary donations, many people left their condolences and they shared their grief for what had occurred. Condolences were also offered in the following days in the PEI Legislature. dir-

“... As the buoy line was being recovered, the master of the Joel ‘98 saw the Forever Chasin’ Tail heading directly toward the port side of the Joel ‘98. At about the same time, the crew on board the Forever Chasin’ Tail saw the Joel ‘98 directly in front of them.”

— TSB report statement

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