Coast Guard Searches for Overdue Boaters PORTSMOUTH, Va. – The Coast Guard is searching the James River for three boaters who were reported overdue at 11 p.m. Saturday night. The boaters were fishing onboard the 23-foot blue and white fishing boat Reel Naughty. A 41-foot search and rescue boat from Station Portsmouth, the Coast Guard […]
BLACK SEA BASS – COMMERCIAL FISHING OPERATIONS – ATLANTIC OCEANPreston P. Pate, Jr., Director, Division of Marine Fisheries, hereby announces that effective at 12:01A.M., Monday, January 16, 2006, the following restrictions shall apply to the commercial black sea bass fishery north of Cape Hatteras (35° 15.3’N. Latitude):I. SIZE LIMITIt is unlawful to possess black sea […]
COMMERCIAL FISHING OPERATIONS – ATLANTIC OCEANPreston P. Pate, Jr., Director, Division of Marine Fisheries, hereby announces that effective at 12:01 A.M., Monday, January 16, 2006, the following restrictions shall apply to the commercial flounder fishery:I. HARVEST LIMITSA. During the period beginning at 12:01 A.M., Monday, January 16, 2006 and ending at 6:00 P.M., Monday, January […]
NOAA PREDICTS WEAK LA NIÑA Jan. 12, 2006  Weak La Niña conditions are predicted in the tropical Pacific just in time for spring, but NOAA scientists stress it is too early to know how this could affect springtime and summertime weather patterns in the United States. La Niña is the periodic cooling of ocean […]
BIG STRIPER TAKES TOP SLOTMOREHEAD CITY – In the waning days of 2005, out-of-state angler David N. Hiebert hauled in a monster striped bass, breaking a 34-year North Carolina record.On Dec. 30, Hiebert, of Scotts, MI, landed a 62-pound striped bass that was 53.5 inches long, with a 32-inch girth. Hiebert caught the big fish […]
CAP SET ON BLUE CRAB SIZE LIMITResearch Shows Abundance and Size of Crabs DecliningMOREHEAD CITY – Beginning Jan. 16, recreational and commercial fishermen will be faced with a first-ever maximum size limit for the crabs they harvest – no mature female crabs can be kept over 6 ¾ inches from spike to spike and no […]
FEMALE BLUE CRABS – ALL COASTAL WATERSPreston P. Pate, Jr., Director, Division of Marine Fisheries, hereby announces that effective at 12:01 A.M., Monday, January 16, 2006, the following provisions shall apply to the taking of female blue crabs in coastal waters:I. MAXIMUM SIZE LIMIT AND CULLING TOLERANCEA. It is unlawful to possess mature female blue […]
SHELLFISH POLLUTED AREAPreston P. Pate, Jr., Director, Division of Marine Fisheries, upon the recommendation of Leah Devlin, D.D.S., M.P.H., State Health Director, Department of Health and Human Services, hereby announces that the following changes in shellfish harvesting area will take effect at sunrise, Thursday, January 12, 2006.All those waters in Brunswick County will return to […]
Media Advisory Coast Guard Suspends Search for Missing Tugboat Crewman PORTSMOUTH, VA. – The Coast Guard has suspended the search this afternoon for Richard Kuczera, a 38-year old crewman from the tugboat Emma M. Roehrig. The search for Kuczera, a New York resident, who fell overboard at approximately 5 a.m. today, eight miles west of […]
SHELLFISH POLLUTED AREA Preston P. Pate, Jr., Director, Division of Marine Fisheries, upon the recommendation of Leah Devlin, D.D.S., M.P.H., State Health Director, Department of Health and Human Services, hereby announces that the following shellfish area temporary closure will take effect immediately:No person shall take or attempt to take any oysters, clams or mussels or […]
