The Toronto Star
1 September 97
AND ON THE HIGH SEAS, OUR NAVY SAVES 16
Byline: Michelle Shephard
The crew of a Canadian navy frigate has rescued 16 sailors scrambling to stay afloat around their sinking fishing boat. The fishermen were pulled from the sea by the crew of HMCS Halifax off the coast of western Africa after their boat capsized during a fierce storm. Six other crew members from the fishing boat, including the captain and chief engineer, were likely trapped inside when it sank in the Atlantic Ocean near Dakar, Senegal, in 24 metres of water. Late last night, local divers recovered two bodies from the wreck. Frigate Commander Andre Langlois said he was nearing Dakar when he noticed what he thought was a piece of concrete sticking out of the ocean. Seconds later he realized it was the barnacled bottom of a 30-metre fishing boat, surrounded in the water by its screaming crew. Launching its three boats and a Sea King helicopter, the Canadians managed to rescue 16 of the 22 people who had been aboard the vessel. Two of them were taken to hospital, one with internal injuries and the other with burns. The survivors told the navy their boat sank in a five-metre swell after its cargo shifted. It was returning to Senegal after a 45-day fishing expedition. Langlois said the storm was fierce and its massive waves tossed around his sturdy frigate and its 225 crew members. It is the first time in 45 years that Canada has sent a naval ship to South Africa.Quoted by the scribe of the '76 Mech Eng Book', Andre was heard to say "If they were Eng Moosers, I would have left them there!"
A Quote sent in from Dennis Kolba: "Presumably the ones he did save were all Mech Eng. If they had been Eng Moosers they never would have tipped their damn boat in the first place."
