Report on marine accident with the fishing vessel Peik LF5765, capsized at Slettnes, Gamvik, Finnmark, Norway, 9 January 2022

As the fishermen ended up in the sea without survival suits, without the life raft inflating and with the closest land being about 400 metres away, it was very unlikely that they would survive. 

The investigation has shown that the route the fishing vessel took deviated significantly from the routes chosen by other fishing vessels. The year's voyage also deviated from previous years, which had been made considerably further north and away from the shallow waters. It is unclear to the Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority why the vessel changed course and sailed closer to shore off Slettnes.

The investigation has shown that the stability calculations should not have been approved, as they did not meet the regulatory requirements. This was partly because weight changes had been made that were not reflected in the calculations. The changes led to a reduced freeboard and a higher centre of gravity, thereby reducing stability. In addition, on the day of the accident there was more cargo onboard than in the basis for approval. Based on calculations, the Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority is of the opinion that these changes do not alone explain why the vessel capsized, but significantly reduced stability at large angles of roll made it extremely challenging in the prevailing weather conditions. 

The investigation has shown that the approved company had not identified several factors on board that were not in accordance with the regulatory requirements, and which probably had a bearing on the course of events. The Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority is of the opinion that all these factors could have been identified during the check carried out by the approved company, and that it had poor procedures for documenting that the conditions checked corresponded with those indicated on the checklist. After the accident, the approved company has implemented several corrective measures.