In the unforgiving expanse of the Bering Sea, 390 miles southeast of safety and on the storm’s leading edge, the crew of the F/V Wizard faced a harrowing ordeal as worsening weather transformed routine crab fishing into a fight for survival. Amid 20- to 35-foot seas, mechanical failures, and mounting injuries, Captain Keith Colburn and his team pushed through relentless waves to haul their final pots, underscoring the brutal realities of Alaska’s deadliest catch.
The storm intensified rapidly over the last few hours, with winds and currents clashing to create chaotic conditions. “It’s getting worse. Look out. It’s getting a lot worse,” warned a crew member as massive rollers battered the vessel. Colburn, prioritizing safety, adjusted the boat’s course to a port quarter, quartering downwind to minimize risk. “Putting this weather on the starboard side too much,” he noted, emphasizing the need for strategic maneuvering in such gales.
With only nine pots left aboard, the operation turned perilous. A particularly vicious wave sent shockwaves through the deck, injuring at least one crewman who “slammed pretty hard” into the rail, reporting severe arm pain. “I got you. Over there. Got to go inside,” shouted colleagues as they rushed the hurt fisherman to shelter. Later assessments revealed the injury might sideline him, reducing the deck to a three-man team—a dire setback in what Colburn described as a “brute force fishery.”
Compounding the chaos, a mechanical issue emerged: “The bearing seize broke,” one crew member reported, adding to the vessel’s woes. Sleep rotations shattered under the strain, forcing Colburn to juggle hauling gear with crew rest. “The rotation is now officially completely broke,” he lamented. “Too much, man. It’s one thing after another.”
Despite the escalating dangers, the drive to meet a critical delivery date kept the Wizard pressing on. “I’ve got to find a way to get the crab on the boat,” Colburn stressed, highlighting the economic pressures of the opilio season. As seas mounted to 40 feet in previews of the storm’s peak, he urged caution: “Don’t go near that rail.” One crewman, admitting to being only “50-60%” functional due to pain, was pulled from duty. “You’re not 100%. All right. 50-60% don’t cut it in 40-ft seas. Just shut her down,” ordered the captain.
The incident echoes the perils chronicled in Discovery’s Deadliest Catch, where the Wizard has long been a fixture for its high-drama voyages. “We just have to hope that we clean up our paradigm fast because it’s only going to get worse and worse and worse,” reflected a crew member, capturing the mounting tension.
As the storm rages, hopes pinned on the string’s final pots yielding clues for resetting gear. “I really praying that’s the case,” Colburn said, determined not to let his team down. “I don’t like limitations.”
For the Wizard’s hardy souls, this squall is a stark reminder of the sea’s unforgiving nature. With weather “not conducive to hauling” and one man already benched, the crew’s resilience will be tested as they battle through the night. Updates from the Bering Sea fleet indicate similar struggles across vessels, with forecasts predicting no quick reprieve.
