A fisherman who fell overboard near Devil’s Island early yesterday morning has still not been found.
The 39-year-old man went out herring fishing with two other men on the vessel Lady Tiana early Sunday, according to the Halifax search and rescue centre. The centre received a call from the coast guard that he had fallen overboard shortly before 2:30 a.m.
“It appears he got tangled somehow and ended up going overboard,” RCMP spokesman Cpl. Joe Taplin said yesterday.
Officials said the man was an experienced fisherman from Oyster Pond. The other two crew members claimed the man was not wearing a life jacket at the time, Taplin said. He apparently fell into the ocean about two nautical miles South of Devil’s Island, near the Eastern Passage shore.
Within moments, other fishing vessels began searching. They were soon joined by ships from the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre and a Cormorant helicopter.
But by 10:15 a.m., the man had still not been found and the Mounties were called in for a land search, Taplin said. They in turn called on Halifax Search and Rescue for help in sweeping the beach. More than 30 search and rescue members arrived at the Hartlen Point area but by nightfall the man had not been located.
Taplin said there had been some traces of the man brought ashore by fishermen involved in the search.
“There (are) some pieces of clothing that have been located, but right now we’re not at liberty to say which,” he said.
Military spokesman Maj. Paul Doucette confirmed the man wasn’t wearing survival gear when he fell into the chilly September water.
“Even at the best of times in this part of the country, to be immersed in cold water for a long period of time would certainly hamper the chances of survival,” Doucette said.
Doucette said the majority of the boats involved in the search were small fishing vessels that were assisting the coast guard cutter Sambro.
– with files from The Canadian Press
