Dutch Harbor, Alaska —
The crew of the Saga endured a turbulent night after being battered by 60-knot winds, engine failure, and crew problems that left Captain Jake Anderson questioning the loyalty and discipline aboard his vessel.
The ordeal began when the skeleton crew—reduced to just three men on deck—struggled to maneuver the vessel away from the dock as high winds threatened to slam the boat into another ship. With only one engine in operation and short-handed, the Saga was moments away from disaster.
“Slack it out, he can’t maneuver with it tight like that,” Anderson barked from the wheelhouse, frustration mounting as key deckhands Kenny Jensen and Jamie Smith were nowhere to be found.
Hours later, the missing crewmen returned, claiming they had been “paying bills.” Anderson immediately ordered both to take alcohol tests, suspecting intoxication. The results appeared mixed, but Jamie admitted to drinking cranberry vodka before reporting back to duty.
“This is a serious offense,” Anderson told his men. “I’m an alcoholic myself. You compromise my sobriety by drinking around me like this.”
After being confined to their quarters for four hours, both men were retested. Kenny passed, but Jamie allegedly tampered with his strip. A fellow crewmember later revealed that Jamie had consumed “six to eight doubles” before returning.
By the time the deception came to light, Jamie had packed his bags and walked off the boat without informing the captain.
Anderson, visibly shaken, said the betrayal could have placed lives in danger. “You’re so lucky you still got your job, dude,” he told Kenny, warning that another incident could end careers.
With 60,000 pounds of crab left to catch and only part of his crew intact, Anderson faces an uphill battle. The Saga sails on, but questions remain about discipline, trust, and survival on one of the most dangerous jobs in the world.
