Dangerous waters
By: by Patrick Dillon.
Publisher: Dial Press
Published: 1997
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 264
Subjects: Altair (Ship); Shipwrecks -- Bering Sea; Crab fisheries -- Alaska -- Dutch Harbor -- Accidents
Description: Delving into the mysterious tragedy of the Americus and Altair, acclaimed journalist Patrick Dillon vivifies the eighty-knot winds, subzero temperatures, and mountainous waves commercial fishermen fight daily to make their living, and illustrates the incredible rise of the Pacific Northwest's ocean frontier: from a father-and-son business to a dangerously competitive multibillion-dollar high-tech industry with one of the highest death rates in the nation.

Here Dillon explores the lives the disaster left behind in Anacortes: the ambitious young entrepreneur who raised the top-notch fleet in a few short years, the guilt-ridden captains of the surviving sister boats, and the grief-numbed families of the crew. Tracing the two-year investigation launched by the Coast Guard and National Transportation Safety Board, he brings to life a heated cast of opponents: ingenious scientists, defensive marine architects, blue-chip lawyers, and wrangling politicians, all struggling to come to terms with the puzzling death of fourteen men at sea.

And finally, in his evocation of one grieving mother's crusade to pass the safety legislation that might save lives, Dillon creates a moving portrait of courage and love.