11 Times The Deadliest Catch Crew Nearly Died On Camera
Since its debut in 2005, Discovery Channel's "Deadliest Catch" has been one of the most watchable shows on TV. Dropping viewers into the shoes of crab fishermen in the Bering Sea as they navigate the fraught, near-impossible job of delivering thousands of pounds of seafood for restaurants and supermarkets all across the world, "Deadliest Catch" has racked up more than a dozen Primetime Emmys during its two decade run. It has also turned the most unlikeliest of ordinary fishermen into some of reality TV's biggest stars.
But there's a reason they call the show "Deadliest Catch," and that's because the lives of these people are constantly being threatened. Though safety improvements have cut down on injuries and fatalities, commercial fishing remains anything but safe. According to the CDC, the fatality rate for a commercial fisherman is 32 times greater than the average U.S. worker; the majority of these fatalities occur in the Alaska region — where "Deadliest Catch" is set.
Although no one has ever actually died on the show, there have been countless close calls onboard nearly all of the ships. From massive waves to rogue pots and wires, even doing simple maintenance, it seems like everything is trying to kill you onboard a crab fishing boat. Here are some of the most memorable times the "Deadliest Catch" crew nearly died on camera.
A deckhand almost gets cut in half
There is no shortage of heavy equipment onboard the ships of "Deadliest Catch," and as Greenhorn Shea Long almost finds out, a lot of it can be incredibly hazardous. During Season 4, Long is working as a deckhand on board the F/V Time Bandit, when he is nearly split in half after an equipment malfunction with the picking hook.
The picking hook is one of the most important parts of a crabbing vessel, as it raises and lowers the nearly 1,000-pound crab pots in and out of the water through a heavy-gauge steel wire. While dealing with heavy westerly winds one night, the 4-inch steel-pin that supports the picking hook snaps, causing the heavy-gauge steel wire to come careening towards the deck. Long is barely 3-feet away from the cable when it slams onto the deck, just missing its trajectory.
Luckily for Long, the picking hook was not attached to a crab pot at the time, because if it had been it likely could have proved fatal. Due to Long's position, he would have been crushed under the weight of the wire and 800 pounds of crab pots. With how fast the cable came flying down, there was zero chance for Long to react, and it was pure luck he wasn't hit at all. Long emerged from the ordeal unscathed, but things could have gone downhill quickly.
Sig Hansen's heart attack
As one of the few skippers to have remained a part of "Deadliest Catch" since it debuted in 2005, Capt. Sig Hansen of the F/V Northwestern has become one of the most beloved members of the cast. That's why his near-fatal heart attack during Season 12 was one of the most frightening moments of the entire show. The scene starts off pretty normal, with Hansen giving an interview about the end of the crabbing season, but things take a turn when he suddenly becomes short of breath.
Thinking it's simply minor chest pains, Hansen is rushed to the hospital but he is immediately treated for a major heart attack. Luckily, Hansen is able to pull through, but it's shocking to know just how close he was to dying. Hansen suffers a widowmaker heart attack, and his doctor notes stunning levels of troponin in his system — the telltale sign of a serious heart attack. You can tell how worried his entire family is just by their body language and concerned looks, and even Hansen looks incredibly beat down.
Hansen's heart attack is one of the closest times anyone has actually come to dying on "Deadliest Catch," and his interview almost turns from a celebration of the end of the season into a deadly disaster. But nothing was gonna keep Hansen down for too long; he returned for Season 13.
The Summer Bay almost loses a man
If there is one thing you never want to hear when crab fishing at night in the Bering Sea, it's "Man overboard!" The poor visibility of the darkness, combined with the frigid temperatures and roaring waves of the sea are a recipe for disaster, and one night it almost proves deadly for the men aboard the F/V Summer Bay.
During Season 14's episode "Greenhorn Overboard," the Summer Bay is battling some serious currents during a torrential downpour. The waves are so big that even Capt. "Wild" Bill Wichrowski is having trouble maneuvering the ship, as the waves keep crashing into the side and onto the deck of the vessel. One of the deckhands, Spencer Moore, is attempting to bull in a buoy, when he gets ripped into the sea by an extremely fast current. Unable to let go of the rope in time, his entire body is sucked overboard and into the freezing Bering Sea. Knowing they have mere seconds before Moore is either lost at sea or succumbs to hypothermia, the crew rescues and pulls him back aboard, much to everyone's relief.
Still, the battle isn't over; they have to get the man out of his wet clothes and reverse his dropping body temperature. Moore is able to survive the ordeal without more than a scratch and some bruises; he was even able to finish out the rest of the season.
Massive waves almost overtake the Saga
One of the biggest safety hazards for the crews on "Deadliest Catch" is the weather, also one of the few things over which they have absolutely no control. The Bering Sea produces all sorts of unpredictable storms and weather, including torrential rain, gale force winds, and of course, absolutely monstrous waves.
During Season 9, the crew of the F/V Saga are battling through a particularly bad storm when a massive 55-foot wave crashes onto the deck. The entire deck is briefly submerged in water, then the boat starts rocking and rolling. Multiple crew members are nearly washed to sea, and heavy equipment and crab buckets are floating around as potential hazards. The crew has no warning, as the wave blindsides the ship, requiring them to hold for dear life as Capt. Elliot Neese struggles to keep the Saga upright and afloat.
Yet, what makes everything even more unsettling is that Neese never checks in with the crew afterwards to make sure they are okay, which clearly miffs them. It also comes to light that the crew doesn't know where important safety equipment is located, which could have made things even worse. This incident almost turned into one of the worst disasters in "Deadliest Catch" history, but thankfully everyone walks away with only some minor bruising.
Freddie almost gets crushed
Being out in the middle of the Bering Sea means the crews on "Deadliest Catch" have to be self-sufficient, often making quick repairs on-the-fly while at sea. Sometimes these repairs can be every bit as dangerous as the fishing, and one fix almost proves too much for beloved deckhand Freddy Maugatai.
While hauling crab one afternoon on the F/V Time Bandit, the vessel blows a leak in the hydraulic line that operates their crab pot launcher. Without the launcher, the crew can't haul crab pots in and out of the sea, meaning they have to get it immediately repaired. Maugatai steps in to help out, but just as he begins he nearly makes a fatal mistake. Maugatai accidentally disconnects the entire hydraulic line, which causes the launcher to lose pressure, sending a 2,500 pound steel platform down on top of him. Reacting quickly, Maugatai is able to roll out from under the launcher and to safety, just seconds before it snaps shut.
Had Maugatai not been able to get out in time, his entire body could have been squished under the platform — perhaps even worse, his skull could have been trapped and crushed. You can tell how serious the incident is by the way Maugatai and the entire crew react; in 100 episodes and plenty of close calls, it's probably the closest Freddie has come to dying.
The Aleutian Ballad overturns
Sometimes, the weather in the Bering Sea is so fierce and relentless that it stops the crews of "Deadliest Catch" from fishing and they have to ride it out below deck. Still, that hardly makes them safe — as the crew of the F/V Aleutian Ballad learned the hard way during Season 2.
The Aleutian Ballad is just off the coast of Alaska early in the morning, traversing through a serious storm, when a massive rogue wave comes crashing into the side of the boat. The wave is estimated to be about 50-feet high, and not only does it completely submerge the Aleutian Ballad, but it even manages to turn the vessel on its side. This causes a power outage on the ship, as well as causing the engines to seize due to a lack of oil pressure, leaving the ship floating precariously in the sea. The entire ship is plunged into darkness, on its side, and things plunge into utter chaos.
The Aleutian Ballad nearly capsizes and sinks, which would have likely killed everyone on board. Incredibly, the ship is able to stop from turning completely over and naturally stands back up, saving everyone's lives. Capt. Jerry Tilley is able to restart the engines and restore power and they survive the storm, but this could have been one of the biggest commercial fishing disasters in history.
Nick gets appendicitis
One of the most precarious aspects of being a crew member on "Deadliest Catch" is the lack of immediate medical attention available at sea, should something go wrong. While most crews have at least one certified medic or nurse, they are nonetheless profoundly limited in the types of treatment they can offer while on board. That's what made the F/V Northwestern's Nick Mavar's experience with appendicitis during Season 17 such a close call.
When the appendix inside the abdomen ruptures and bursts, it causes an extreme amount of pain and, if not treated quickly — within 72 hours at the most — peritonitis can set in, which can prove fatal. Luckily for Mavar, the Northwestern has yet to set sail when Mavar begins to complain about rib pain, which turns out to be appendicitis. Had Capt. Sig Hansen not had a doctor come on board to check him out, the appendix might have burst at sea.
Unfortunately, Mavar's medical complications appear to have continued after he was taken to the hospital. Following his experience, Mavar ended up suing the Northwestern, alleging inadequate medical treatment caused his appendix to rupture, resulting in severe issues (via Alaska Public Media). Unsurprisingly, Mavar's urgent evacuation was his last appearance on "Deadliest Catch," and he has not rejoined the crew.
The Cornelia Marie nearly capsizes
Getting hit with one monster wave is bad enough in the tumultuous Bering Sea; being hit with two back-to-back is just unfair — and potentially deadly. This is what happens to the crew of the F/V Cornelia Marie in Season 2, when they are lashed by back-to-back waves within mere seconds of each other.
First, a huge wave crashes aboard and submerges the deck, prompting one of the deckhands to yell "Is that all you've got!?" Well, ask and ye shall receive, as the Bering Sea immediately dumps another 20-foot wave onto the ship, nearly forcing it underwater. Everyone on deck nearly loses their balance, sliding across the floor after the second wave, and several of them could have been lifted out of the boat and back into the sea with the rest of the water. The waves are moving incredibly fast, giving the crew little time to react and prepare themselves, but luckily everyone is able to hold on for dear life and survive.
It's moments like these that really show how tough the crew of "Deadliest Catch" needs to be. After narrowly avoiding death and serious injury, the crew simply go back to work catching crabs. After such a life-threatening event, most people would need weeks to recover both physically and emotionally, but not the rock solid crew of the Cornelia Marie.
Deckhand almost gets taken by the sea
Longtime fans of "Deadliest Catch" know one of the most challenging, dangerous aspects of crab fishing is casting the lines for the crab pots into the sea. Not only is it physically hard just to get the buoys and lines into the sea, but once the lines are thrown it's imperative to stay clear of their trajectory, because they threaten to take you right over the edge with them.
That nearly happens to deckhand Kyle Dylerly while aboard the F/V Time Bandit during Season 11, when his entire body is briefly caught in one of the casting lines. The crew is working in some fierce conditions, with 30-foot waves and near hurricane-force winds, when Dyler is thrown to the ground after one of the waves crashes aboard. He unfortunately falls into the path of a freshly cast line, which quickly wraps around him and starts dragging him towards the side.
With quick reactions, the crew is able to free him from the line before it makes it into the sea, likely saving Dyler's life. He didn't emerge completely unscathed, however; the rope appeared to wrap around his ankle and twist it badly. But at least he was able to remain on the ship.
Deckhand nearly crushed by crab pot
In order for the crews on "Deadliest Catch" to haul the incredible amount of crab they pull in, they need some pretty big crab pots to hold them all. These pots are well over 6-feet tall and weigh upwards of 800 pounds, making them dangerous as blunt force objects. Additionally, when they are actively being used they are not tied down, which means they are susceptible to flying around the deck during really big storms. During Season 12, deckhand and Greenhorn on the F/V/ Cape Caution Hunter Cooper is almost killed by a rogue pot after a huge wave splashes onto the deck.
The wave is so powerful that it pushes the crab pot across the deck and right into Cooper, who becomes trapped between the deck and the pot. Luckily, the quick thinking of one of the crew members, Zach Larson (son of the Cape Caution's Capt. "Wild" Bill Wichrowski), saves Cooper from potentially being crushed or sucked overboard into the sea. The crew is able to free Cooper from the crab pot, and Larson throws the line overboard, saving anyone else from potentially being ensnared by it.
This was actually two near death experiences in one incident, as Cooper could have been crushed by the crab pot, or he or another deckhand could have been taken into the sea by the rogue line. It was Larson's quick thinking that helped save the day, and potentially Cooper's life.
Freddie jumps overboard
As one of the longtime deckhands for several vessels on "Deadliest Catch," Freddy Magautai has become a beloved fan-favorite. His no-nonsense attitude, impressive skillset, and outsized personality have endeared him to countless viewers over the years. However, while his hijinks have made him endearing, he doesn't always think them through.
Take the incident when he was working on the Wizard, voluntarily jumping overboard in an effort to help the crew snag a walrus carcass floating in the sea. The crew is trying to wrap a rope around the walrus and drag it up, but unable to do so, Magautai takes it upon himself to jump in and try to rope the animal. Throwing caution to the wind, Magautai removes his gear and jumps shirtless into the frigid sea; he soon ends up straddling the animal's dead carcass, but as the crew and Capt. Keith Colburn are screaming their heads off at him to return, the danger begins to amplify.
Not only does the bitter cold of the water present a problem for potential hypothermia, but Magautai easily could be washed into the sea at any moment by a big wave. One of his crew members is able to throw him a life vest, and they lift him up before anything happens, but it was a pretty close call.