N.B. First Nation locates sunk crab fishing boat off Cheticamp, N.S.

A team from a New Brunswick First Nation will continue to look for a missing fisherman after his boat sank off the cost of Cape Breton, N.S., earlier this month, search co-ordinator Richard Levi said Monday.

The team located the wreckage of the FV Tyhawk Sunday off Cheticamp, N.S., under 70 metres of water, Levi, of the Elsipogtog First Nation, said in an interview.

The First Nation-operated snow crab fishing boat had capsized on April 3 with five men aboard. Four fishermen were pulled from the water, but one of them was declared dead shortly after. The search continues for the boat’s captain, Craig Sock.

Levi said they plan to look for Sock using side sonar scan technology near the wreckage of the boat.

“We’re tired but we’re determined to keep looking,” he said, adding that despite the unpredictable weather, “we’ve managed to stay focused and keep our hopes up that we’ll find him.”

The search team includes Elsipogtog Chief Arren Sock and Esgenoopetitj First Nation Chief Alvery Paul.

Levi said Dominion Diving, a commercial diving company based in Dartmouth, N.S., helped locate the wreckage after the search team discovered rope on the surface of the water near the ship’s last known co-ordinates.

After marking the location of the rope with buoys, Levi said divers used a remotely operated underwater vehicle to find the boat and were able to see its name written on the side of the hull.

The body of the Tyhawk is still fully intact, he said, adding that the search team planed to review the footage later Monday.

“We’re really grateful with all the support that we’re getting from the town of Cheticamp, N.S., and all the native communities around Cape Breton and up to the mainland,” Levi said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 26, 2021.