On the morning of February 11, 2017, the 110-foot fishing vessel Destination disappeared in the Bering Sea with six men aboard, including 60-year-old captain Jeffrey Hathaway. The ship left Dutch Harbor for the snow crab season and was operating near St. George Island in gale-force winds and heavy freezing spray when its Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon activated at 6:15 a.m. A search found a debris field, an oil sheen, the transmitting EPIRB and a single life ring, but none of the crew were recovered.

NOAA located the wreck in July 2017 on the seafloor at about 250 feet. Investigations by the U.S. Coast Guard and the National Transportation Safety Board attributed the sinking chiefly to excessive ice accumulation that compromised stability; the report also cited the captain’s decision to operate in hazardous weather, an overloaded vessel at departure, and a possible open hatch that may have caused rapid flooding. The six men were never found.

If anyone had recent contact with Jeffrey Hathaway or remembers the Destination before it sailed, can you share details that might clarify the timeline leading up to the tragedy?