There was a powerful word being repeated in the joyful Newfoundland community of New-Wes-Valley on Sunday: 鈥淢iracle.鈥�
Over and over, residents out walking or chatting to one another in local stores said the fact seven fishermen from the area had somehow survived roughly 48 hours in a life-raft in the Atlantic ocean and were found by search-and-rescue crews was nothing short of miraculous.
Daphne Crocker leaned over her balcony and spread out her hands.
鈥淲hat a mighty God we serve,鈥� she said about the fishermen coming home.
The Elite Navigator fishing boat and its crew seemed to vanish on Wednesday night after several days at sea fishing for turbot. The craft was reported missing on Thursday after transmitting its final signal at around 8:30 p.m. the night before, the Canadian Coast Guard said. The vessel had caught fire, forcing the crew to abandon the ship and wait for rescue on the life-raft.
A massive search soon followed, involving four coast guard ships, a Cormorant helicopter, a Hercules aircraft and many local fishing vessels.
In New-Wes-Valley, which is an amalgamation of three small fishing communities along Newfoundland鈥檚 northeast coast, people braced for the worst. Fishing is among Canada鈥檚 deadliest professions, and tragedy is a common thread linking people in fishing communities across Atlantic Canada.
But on Friday night, out on the ocean, searchers saw a light from a flare. It brought them to a life-raft, where the seven fishermen 鈥� who people are now calling the Lucky 7 鈥� were waiting.
The men spent about 50 hours adrift in the raft, about about 220 kilometres away from land, said Eugene Carter, the crew鈥檚 captain. The fire broke out on Wednesday night in a locker on the main deck when they were just a couple of hours into a 25-hour journey home, he said.
鈥淲e tried to extinguish the fire once, and then it just shot right back at us,鈥� Carter said in an interview. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like wood burning. We heard the cracking. So we knew that it was pretty serious and that it was out of our control.鈥�
He put out three distress calls, he said, but they weren鈥檛 answered. 鈥淭he fire probably melted the devices, stuff like that, wouldn鈥檛 allow it.鈥�
The crew passed the time in the life-raft telling jokes and passing their flashlight around as if it were a microphone to interview one another.
鈥淚t was unbelievable, but everybody kept their cool to the most that they could,鈥� Carter said.
It was cold and foggy and wet, and the men were crammed into a boat roughly the size of a small car. Sleep was scant, coming only if they managed to nod off with their heads tipped onto their chests. Birds 鈥� 鈥渁 lot of birds鈥� 鈥� swooped and flitted around the raft, 鈥渄riving us crazy,鈥� Carter said.
As Friday wore on, a few of the fishermen seemed to be losing hope they鈥檇 ever be found. But Carter said he had a feeling. He had two flares left, and he knew he had to wait out the fog before he used either one. That night, when the sky finally cleared, he set off a smoke flare. Nothing happened for a few hours, he said, but then a helicopter appeared and flew right over the raft. Carter said he scrambled to light his hand-held flare in time to wave it at the helicopter.
鈥淭hey didn鈥檛 see it, and that was my last flare,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut a coast guard ship was actually looking out, and seen it. And that鈥檚 what got us rescued, my last flare.鈥�
Fisher Toby Peddle said he was terrified as he lept from the burning fishing boat onto the life-raft. He can鈥檛 swim, he said in an interview, and he didn鈥檛 have a survival suit on.
鈥淚t was either jump and risk drowning or stay and be burned,鈥� he said. 鈥淭here was no time to think about it. I just knew I had to jump.鈥�
Carter and another crew member, Jordan Lee King, promised they鈥檇 grab him as soon as he hit the water, Peddle said, And they made good on their promise.
鈥淚 was relieved I made it to the raft. I couldn鈥檛 swim a stroke to save my life,鈥� Peddle said.
Peddle credited Carter for keeping the crew calm as they drifted in the life-raft, surrounded by nothing but fog and an endless expanse of ocean.
鈥淗e just kept telling us, 鈥榃e鈥檙e going to be fine. They know where we are, they鈥檒l find us,鈥欌�� he said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 a hero.鈥�
The hardest moments came when the men could hear helicopters flying overhead and knew the pilots couldn鈥檛 see them through the fog.
A parade is planned for Sunday evening in New-Wes-Valley to celebrate the men鈥檚 survival, and Premier Andrew Furey is in the community and is expected to attend. Signs around the town say, 鈥淲elcome home Lucky 7.鈥�
When the fishers were still missing, the community announced it was cancelling its annual Crab Festival, which was set to begin on Saturday. Now that the men are home, the festival is back on, with opening day on Monday.
At the wharf in New-Wes-Valley on Sunday afternoon, Peter Barfoot鈥檚 phone was pinging relentlessly in his pocket. He is good friends with David Tiller, one of the rescued fishermen, and he鈥檇 just launched a fundraising campaign to buy Tiller a new guitar.
The instrument went down with the Elite Navigator and Barfoot said it was 鈥渁 no-brainer鈥� to mount an effort to buy him a new one. He鈥檇 raised about $1,600 by Sunday afternoon.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e heroes,鈥� Barfoot said, shaking his head in disbelief. 鈥淗ow often do you hear this? It was a dire situation that turned into what it is now 鈥� They鈥檙e alive. They got a second chance at their life.鈥�
Carter said he was still coming to grips with what happened. But he was ready to head back out to fish.
鈥淚 told all my crew members 鈥楽tatistically, you could be driving to Gander every day and you鈥檇 have a better chance of getting in an accident in your vehicle than of this happening again,鈥� he said. 鈥淒on鈥檛 give up on your fishing.鈥�
Frank Granter, who worked for the Canadian Coast Guard for 35 years and was out walking through the community on Sunday afternoon, said it was a miracle the Lucky 7 returned.
鈥淚t鈥檚 once in a lifetime you鈥檒l see something like this, when all the people survive,鈥� Granter said.
鈥淏ut October, November, it would have been a different story.鈥�
Sarah Smellie and Michael Tutton, The Canadian Press
