PACIFIC OCEAN — The last thing any fisherman ever wants to do is place a mayday call because their boat is sinking, but for Capt. Adam Hall and the F/V Tommy John, that's exactly what happened late in the night on Saturday, July 25, about a 20-hour voyage off the south Washington coast.
Hall and boat co-owner Greg Surgener of Southern California-based Surgener Fisheries sank big dollars into purchasing the Tommy John, moored at the time in San Diego. The duo wanted to find a boat to tuna and crab fish and felt the 50-footer was the right fit for their needs. Named for retired four-time Major League Baseball All-Star pitcher Tommy John, nicknamed "The Bionic Man," the vessel was specifically built for tuna 40 years ago.
But like the aging pitcher in the twilight of his 26-season career, his namesake vessel requires a good deal of looking after. On the way north, Tommy John threw its new owners its first curveball.
Though not based in Pacific County, it spends a good deal of time off our shore. Coast Guard Sector Columbia River ended up playing a key role in its first major local trip, and its trials and tribulations will sound familiar to most commercial fishermen.
Engine blew
“I went down there about four months ago to go start fixing things and do maintenance and everything to get ready to bring it up to Oregon,” Hall said. “I hired a couple of guys in Newport, Oregon to fly down there with me and get it. We brought it back up here."
Hall continued, "the main engine pretty much needed to be [completely] rebuilt. We knew that when we left. It blew, but we made it all the way home to Westport with the boat before it went completely. So that was good. It’s been a big process just going through things and trying to not go bald at the same time.”
After Hall and his crew completed all the projects, they did a sea trial out of Westport on July 23 that he reported went well. So the boat set out the following day for a multi-day journey to the tuna grounds some 60 miles off the Washington coast.
Taking on water
Late in the night July 25 in near-complete darkness, the boat began taking on water with a list to the stern. Hall and his crew rushed around to find the cause, hoping to identify the issue before the boat could sink.
“Our lazarette [storeroom] decided it wanted to leak and then there were actually holes in the hull of the boat we didn’t even know about,” Hall said. “Somewhere in the stern [small little rust holes] came through and [were] slowly filling up the lazarette in about three different places. It was slow leaks, but it added up after being out at sea for a day and a half.”
Hall continued, “All of a sudden the laz alarm went off and I was like ‘What in the hell, this is not good.’ We had all the bait on the boat, all the water we were putting on the boat for bait to live in. It was definitely scary.”
Fortunately, Hall knew several of the other captains who had run the Tommy John before and began calling them to get advice on what he could do and what options he had.
Skipper Adam Hall maintains a positive attitude at the helm of the Tommy John.
“I was like 'Hey, the boat doesn’t really act like it wants to sink like this,' Hall said. “The guy who ran it before me filled up the laz three of four times I guess and he knew it wouldn’t sink with the laz full. So it’s a tough boat and can take a lot of weight.”
Hall continued, “We did get into a really bad spot, though, where maybe the boat wasn’t going to sink right away because of the water weight back there, [but eventually was going to sink]. We ended up having holes in the boat — we lost the steering and had a full laz. We were dead in the water.”
Mayday, mayday, mayday
After the boat lost its steering, it also lost its pumps so it was no longer able to stay ahead of the water coming in. This prompted Hall to make the tough decision to issue a distress call to the U.S. Coast Guard that the boat was going down.
“We were very liable to sink at [this] point,” Hall said. “The deck was getting swamped and we were about three inches from the bottom of the door. I knew then this could turn into something.”
Other captains fishing near Hall recommended he dump $2,000 in bait he had on board to help lighten the vessel. Soon after, a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter arrived on scene and lowered down a gas-powered water pump to aid the boat.
“All of us [on the boat] had to work as a team all night to get the water out and save the boat ourselves, and we did,” Hall said. “I’m glad they brought us [the pump] and we really appreciate the Coast Guard like no other.”
Hall continued, “I’ve been doing this for 20 years right here in Oregon and Washington and I know some of the Coast Guard guys, too, and it just touches home when they help us out.”
Not out of danger just yet
The battered crew and captain were around 20 hours from the nearest port and while the boat was now righted and they were able to remove excess water, the hydraulics weren't working. Hall had to man the helm wheel and hand-steer the boat toward port.
“I had just replaced the helm and a lot of crabbers take the steering wheels out because they like having their jog levers,” Hall said. “Well, I am a crabber too, so I put a giant lever in, but I insisted because that's how I have my boat setup in Newport — that I have a helm and a jog lever — because when everything else fails, you can hand steer yourself.”
Hall and his crew were able to limp the Tommy John into Warrenton for emergency repairs to the hull, the lazarette, and damage to the rudder.
The boat headed back out to see a few days later with renewed hope and a new crew.
“[The previous crew members] got scared for their lives and they had never been on the ocean,” Hall said. “It was like a no-brainer for them after the emergency. They were like ‘Man, we just wanna go home.' One of the guys has kids and a wife and had never even done any of this stuff before. Even I was scared and I’ve been doing this for 20 years.”
After a troubled initial trip that ended in a tortuous 20-hour slog into Warrenton for emergency repairs, the Tommy John brought in a full load of albacore.
Redemption
The second trip went much better, according to Hall, who is happy to report that the boat had a successful trip and caught a massive amount of tuna.
“We completely plugged the boat. We couldn’t have fit another fish on the boat. We did it in 14 days and got 23 tons,” Hall said. “I’m really happy about it and it’s exactly what we needed from everything we’ve been through as a company and as a whole. We really needed it.”
He continued, “It feels amazing. You know like we did everything right finally. I'm happy. I’m sad. It’s all of the emotions. It hits home, it really does because this is my career, this is my life. I’ve been working at this since the day I stepped on another guy's boat as a crew guy.”
Three days after offloading on Aug. 17 the Tommy John and its new crew led by Capt. Adam Hall departed for the tuna grounds, hoping for another 23-ton trip.
The Link LonkAugust 25, 2020 at 01:45AM
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