Atlantic Charger crew members reunite with families in Newfoundland

Crew members of an ill-fated fishing vessel have finally returned home to Newfoundland, a few days after they were forced to abandon their sinking boat off the coast of Nunavut.

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• Atlantic Charger rescue mission: Canadian Forces detail their role

After they were located and rescued inFrobisherBay, crew members were taken toIqaluitbefore starting their journey back to Newfoundland.

The men finally arrived in Harbour Graceround 9:30 a.m. Friday aboard the fishing trawlerKatsheshuk. They weregreetedbyanxious family members.

Conditions 'pretty rough'

After coming ashore, crew member Winston Dearing told CBC News that while he isn't sure what exactly caused the boat to take on water, the conditions that day were less than ideal.

"Sea conditions were pretty rough," Dearing, who lives in Moreton's Harbour,said from his car after being reunited with his wife on Friday."I don't really want to comment on what happenedand I don't really know for sure anyway."

When asked how the crew held upduring 10 long hours in a life-boat,Dearingsaid thinking of families back home allowed the nine crew members to stay calm and focused.

"Just the will to get back to our families," he said.

"I'm sure it was a lot harder for family and friends at home than it was for us. We knew what was happening.We kind of had some control over our destiny, but they didn't know."

Rescuers praised

Dearing credits the work of those who came to rescue them, as well as those on the KatsheshukII,for ensuringthey all got back to Newfoundland safe and sound.

He told CBC News that despite the close call, he will continue to work as a fisherman.

"It's what I've always done," he said. "That's what I'm goingto continue to do."

Brad Watkins,the owner of the sunken vessel, told reporters after the crew arrivedthat he still can't believe the prized boat is now sitting at the bottom of the ocean.

"I'm dumbfounded.I know what she was capable of, and I still find it very hard to believe that Mother Nature took her down, I still can't believe itbut she did," he said.

That's what Newfoundlanders dowe hold together.- Brad Watkins, owner of the Atlantic Charger

"There's nothing in Atlantic Canada that can do what this vessel done, you can't replace her, she's irreplaceable."

Watkins said he had insurance on the Atlantic Charger, but losing it will still be a big blow to his business.

Seeing his crew embracing their families was a welcome sight after days of anxiety and sleepless nights waiting for them to arrive back home.

"I was stomach sick all morningbecause I just wanted to see them and talk to them and thank them," he said.

"The feeling of knowing they're on their way and safe is great, but you've got to see them for it to sink in."

Watkins said he still isn't exactly sure what happened to the boat, but he suspects rough weather conditions played a part in the sinking.

The military has told him that the Atlantic Chargeris now completely submerged and no longer visible, despite earlier reports that it was still only partially under water.

He said the quick actions of the ships that came to rescue thecrew are to thank for everyone getting home safe.

"They had a hard time going to rescue the boys too, they were in a storm," he said.

"Being on the water and seafarers, you got tolook out for one another.It was the right thing to do, and that's what Newfoundlanders dowe hold together."

The St. John's-registered AtlanticChargeris a20-metre fishing vessel designed by TriNav Marine Design and built by Val Cull of Northern Boat Building and Repair in Port Saunders.

The crew was fishing for turbot near Nunavut when they began began taking on wateroff Resolution Islandearly Monday, forcing the ninemembers, all fromNewfoundland and Labrador, to declare an emergency andscramble into a lifeboat.

Initial reports were that the boat had sunk, but authorities later clarified that the boat was taking on water.

The Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Halifax said the crew was well prepared and in good health following Monday's rescue.

Mike Forward, a crew member of the Katsheshuk, told CBC News on Friday that the Atlantic Charger crew was well trained, which likelyprevented them from getting in more trouble than they did.