The Captain of the Northern Belle, which went down Tuesday night in the frigid waters off Alaska, sacrificed himself to save his crew, one of the crewmen says.
In this interview from Q13.com, survivor Robert Jack describes what happened on board the vessel before it went down. When the Radio Beacon didn’t activate, Jack explains that Captain Robert Royer jumped to action to give a mayday call so the Coast Guard would know their location. “There’s only two ways we could have got saved: the EPIRB or the mayday call, and our captain made it in there and sacrificed himself, I believe, to make a mayday call for his crew,” Jack said. Q13 reports that another crewmember saw a big metal box hit the captain on his head when he jumped into the water.
Robert Jack, Nicole Esau, and Todd Knivila were all pulled to safety after spending three hours in the water. When Royer was pulled up, he was unresponsive and later pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer Sara Francis. More here.)
I couldn't imagine having to live through something like that. Drowning at sea has been my worst phobia ever since I was a little kid.
Hats off to all our Harvesters of the Sea at a sad time like this.
Man, that's horrible. Cheers, Captain Royer. Stay safe, guys.
“A Sea Lion Dies of Blunt Force Injuries”.
His family should be proud that he kept his head and adhered to protocol, saving three lives. In a way, it should actually be a bit of a comfort – really – to think that he might have been knocked unconscious rather than die of exposure or drowning.
This is so sad. Rob was a good, honest man and the community will miss him.
Well done, Captain Royer. May his memory be eternal! God bless.