Fishing boat feared to have sunk; two fishermen mourned

The search for two White Head fishermen who did not return home on Thursday, February 11, was suspended by the Canadian Coast Guard after a 24-hour search of the area in which their scallop dragger is suspected to have sunk.

"The survivability time for someone in that water is estimated at five hours," points out Lt. Edward Stansfield, the public affairs officer for Maritime Forces Atlantic in Halifax. "We'd been out for 24 hours, so by sundown on Friday we turned the case over to the RCMP.

A family member alerted the Coast Guard at about 7 p.m. on Thursday that the 37' The Whole Family, with 45-year-old Harold Cossaboom and 36-year-old Corey Cossaboom aboard, was overdue.

Stansfield says, "The vessel hadn't returned to port. There wasn't any distress signal or beacon. We dispatched a Cormorant helicopter and Hercules aircraft out of CFB Greenwood, Nova Scotia, and they started out monitoring a very large area, 50 by 50 nautical miles, before they could narrow it down to about 10 kilometers east of Saint John where the Black River flows into the Bay of Fundy. They searched for 24 hours, only stopping to refuel."

The aircraft were assisted by three Canadian Coast Guard vessels out of Saint John, and many local fishermen were on site to help. "It's amazing, from my perspective," says Stansfield of the fishing boats that joined search for the Cossabooms and The Whole Family. "You can tell how tight the community is by that effort."

"Unfortunately, there was no indication of where the vessel went down. Some debris C some broken up fishing crates C was found early in the search of the 50 by 50 and identified by a family member as belonging to the missing vessel, but there was no indication of where the hull is."

"That was the end of the road for us," Stansfield says of the Coast Guard's involvement in the search for The Whole Family, adding that the crew did not have wet suits. "We had gone long past the time where we were going find those fishermen safe and sound."

"And there was no cause, that we were able to determine, for the vessel's disappearance," he reports. "The weather conditions were not particularly dangerous or hazardous. There was no distress call, and these were very experienced fishermen, so it's a bit of a mystery."

"In fact, the fishermen are so good at what they do, bad news like this is rare."

Corporal Andy Cook of the Grand Manan RCMP reports that on Tuesday, February 23, "our helicopter flew around the search area but didn't find anything. No debris. No bodies."

Fishing community saddened

"Our hearts go out to the Cossaboom families," says Melanie Sonnenberg of the Grand Manan Fishermen's Association. "Harold was a longtime member and past president. He was such an important part of our group. We're just reeling."

"Both men are in the hearts and minds of everybody here, and they are in our prayers."

Calls for search to resume

New Brunswick Fisheries Minister Rick Doucet, MLA for Charlotte-the Isles, is urging federal agencies to resume the search for the Cossabooms. "The people of White Head and Grand Manan were devastated by the loss of these two individuals. This tragic situation has the families and our communities grieving, and they were further disheartened to learn that search efforts have been suspended."

"With two of their community members taken from them without a trace, I believe federal agencies should be using all means at their disposal to continue the search effort," said Doucet, who talked with federal Fisheries Minister Gail Shea and New Brunswick Southwest MP Greg Thompson and suggests working together to determine if sophisticated electronic equipment may be available to assist in the search and recovery.

"I have spoken with the affected families and share their view that this is not the time to give up on finding answers," said Doucet. "I sincerely hope that federal agencies will resume this effort and do what they can to help the White Head families in this tragic situation."

Doucet said, in difficult times like this, New Brunswickers come together to offer support and encouragement, and they keep the affected families in their thoughts and prayers. "I offer my heartfelt condolences and deepest sympathies to the families and to the community.