February 11, 2026

Disaster in the Bering Sea

42 minutes

On Valentine’s Day 1983, two new, beautiful sister ships, the Americus and the Altair sank in the Bering Sea in calm water while on their way to the king crab grounds near the Pribilof Islands. Fourteen men lost their lives in the worst disaster in the history of U.S. commercial fishing. A massive investigation ensued to determine what happened to the boats and what could be done to make commercial fishing safer.

Those lost:

The Americus:

George Nations

Brent Boles

Larry Littlefield

Rich Awes

Victor Bass

Jeff Nations

Paul Northcutt

The Altair:

Ronald Beirnes

Jeff Martin

Lark Breckenridge

Troy Gudbranson

Randy Harvey

Brad Melvin

Tony Vienhage

Sources:

Much of this episode is based on the book Lost At Sea by Patrick Dillon. I’ve read this book three times, and I highly recommend it. Dillon extensively researched the losses of the Americus and Altair. He talked to fishermen, families of those lost, investigators, marine architects, and many other experts and observers. He tells a heart-felt and fact-filled story, not only about the “A” boats but about the commercial fishing industry and the politics of commercial fishing in the early 1980s. There’s so much more in his book than I’ve told you here, and if you’re like me, you won’t be able to put it down once you start reading it.

Twenty Years After A-Boat Disasters, Scars Remain in Community. Available at: https://djcoregon.com/news/2003/02/13/twenty-years-after-aboat-disaster-scars-remain-in-fishing-community/

United States Coast Guard Marine Casualty Report. Available at: https://www.dco.uscg.mil/Portals/9/DCO%20Documents/5p/CG-5PC/INV/docs/boards/amerialtair.pdf

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Robin Barefield lives in the wilderness on Kodiak Island, where she and her husband own a remote lodge. She has a master’s degree in fish and wildlife biology and is a wildlife-viewing and fishing guide. Robin has published six novels: Big Game, Murder Over Kodiak, The Fisherman’s Daughter, Karluk Bones, Massacre at Bear Creek Lodge, and The Ultimate Hunt. She has also published two non-fiction books: Kodiak Island Wildlife and Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. She draws on her love and appreciation of the Alaska wilderness as well as her scientific background when writing.

Robin invites you to join her at her website: https://robinbarefield.com, and while you are there, sign up for her free monthly newsletter about true crime in Alaska. Robin also narrates a podcast, Murder and Mystery in the Last Frontier. You can find it at: https://murder-in-the-last-frontier.blubrry.net

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By Robin Barefield

4.7

208208 ratings