On August 22, 1967, the 233-ton tugboat Ocean Rockswift was heading back to its home port of Saint John, New Brunswick. Silver King was out at sea on a herring fishing trip.[2] Around midnight, the tugboat struck Silver King about nine miles off the coast of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.[3] Silver King immediately flipped on its side and took on water.[2] Crew members from the seiner Dunville boarded the submerged vessel and cut a hole in the bow to rescue the lone survivor.[4][3] Less than 24 hours later, two scuba divers, Andy Wallace and Jack Hatfield, entered the submerged vessel through the hole and recovered six bodies.[5][2]
Six crew members died in the incident, all were from Wedgeport.[5] The lone survivor was 27 year-old Robert Bruce "Bobby" McDowell of Hackensack, New Jersey who was vacationing in Wedgeport with his family.[3][5] His uncle, Captain Roderick Boudreau died in the accident.[3][6][7]
| Name |
Age |
Notes |
|---|
| Captain Roderick Boudreau |
|
[5] |
| Edgar Boudreau |
|
[5] |
| Vernon Boudreau |
|
[5] |
| Stanis Bourque |
|
[5] |
| Camille LeBlanc |
|
[5] |
| Raymond LeBlanc |
|
[5] |
An inquiry was held before Justice L. Ritchie of the New Brunswick Supreme Court.[8]
Canada