Seth Gano was 31 and working aboard the 130-foot crab vessel Scandies Rose when the boat capsized and sank on the last day of 2019. The vessel left Kodiak for the Bering Sea to start the crabbing season and encountered severe weather around 10 p.m. on New Year’s Eve. A mayday was sent before the Scandies Rose went down about 2.75 miles southeast of Sutwik Island. Winds were reported at 45 knots, seas up to 20 feet, and heavy freezing spray.

Of seven crew members, two were rescued in a life raft wearing survival suits; five, including Seth and the captain and his son, were never located. The Coast Guard searched roughly 1,400 square miles over 20 hours with helicopters, planes, and a cutter before suspending the search. Investigators later cited inaccurate vessel stability instructions, heavy ice accumulation on the vessel and crab pots, and severe weather as probable causes; ice was estimated at 6 to 15 inches and likely raised the vessel’s center of gravity.

Debris, including buoys marked with the ship’s identification, later washed ashore. The vessel owners reached a settlement exceeding $9 million with the two survivors and families of four lost crew members.