The Wizard and Captain Keith Colburn get no breaks tonight as Deadliest Catch sees deckhand Crosby Leveen nearly dragged under the boat.
Strong ocean currents generate immense downward pressure on the pots, which creates a hazardous situation when the buoys they are attached to are hooked and pulled on board, and then reset.
The unpredictable speed at which they are sucked into the water presents a serious hazard for the crew.
Our exclusive clip below shows how Crosby almost gets tangled in one of the ropes and is nearly zip-lined across the deck and pulled over the side of the boat.
Watching from the upper deck, Captain Keith looks on nervously as the incident unfolds, and explains how an incident like that could easily end up with Crosby dead.
Keith says: “That’s a big man [Crosby] to get towed across deck….the thing is, if Crosby is tangled up and goes with that buoy, he goes around that block, over the sides, under the boat, and into the stern. No more Crosby.”
Despite the on-deck drama, the crew rebounds with Crosby shaken but okay as the guys pull in over 300 crab — a decent haul for a single pot.
Battling fierce tides is a risky way to crab but appears to be stirring the crustaceans into the Wizard’s pots making for a lucrative run.
Last week Captain Keith had another near injury as Wizard crew member Gary Soper was nearly washed over by a rogue wave.
Deadliest Catch airs Tuesday at 9/8c on Discovery.