Lost Fisherman's Heroics Recalled -- Fiancee Says He Saved Her In '88

LAKE FOREST PARK - Whatever happened to the Harvey G before the fishing boat disappeared in Alaska's Bering Sea, it happened very fast.

Although skipper Ken Krumal had his wild moments, he was said to be a bastion of level-headedness in an emergency.

Tierna Bravo knows that firsthand. She was with her fiance last time he was aboard a sinking fishing boat. That time he saved her life; this time Krumal, 32, probably died, along with three other fishermen.

The four, including John Morgan of the Seattle area, remain missing. The boat went down in 18-foot seas and 50-knot winds.

The Harvey G sent a Mayday call late Friday night, but searchers found only an empty life raft and life preserver. A crew from one of dozens of fishing boats in the search found a body floating in a partly zipped survival suit, but the body slipped out and sank when they tried to pull it aboard.

The Coast Guard yesterday suspended the search for the missing crab boat.

"Ken knew he had to get in that survival suit and get on that raft. The fact he didn't means something extreme happened. I couldn't even guess what. I guess I'll never know," said Bravo, 27, who lived with Krumal near Lake Forest Park.

In August 1988, when Bravo was salmon fishing with Krumal in southeastern Alaska, the autopilot got stuck and the 56-foot boat tipped over. Bravo was trapped in the galley when a stove came unbolted from a wall, blocking the only door. It was midnight and pitch black.

A porthole exploded, and water started pouring inside. All Bravo could hear was crashing and the engine's roar. Krumal was searching for her, and when he reached the doorway, he briefly saw the top of her head before she went underwater. He reached in, found her wrist in the darkness and pulled her out.

All six fishermen aboard swam to the life raft and were picked up by a fishing boat several hours later. Among them was Seattle maritime attorney Anthony Urie. He and Krumal were partners in the Kathleen Diane, the sunken boat.

"Ken was one of the top (salmon) fishermen in Bristol Bay, and he was a very promising crab skipper," Urie said. "I'm real shocked."

The Harvey G's home port was Ketchikan, and the crew was fishing for snow crab about 100 miles north of Cold Bay in the Aleutian Islands. This was Krumal's third winter of crabbing but the first time he'd skippered the Harvey G.

Bravo learned the Harvey G was missing when her phone rang at 3 a.m. Saturday. It was a friend in Alaska who didn't want her to hear the news from a stranger.

Since then, her phone has been ringing constantly. Krumal was well-known among fishermen, she said. He usually fished aboard his herring skiff, the Cash Flow, and his 32-foot stern picker, Dr. Jack.

Krumal thrived on adventure and outdoor sports. A large, framed photo shows him flashing a "thumbs up" while leaning on a bear, one of two he killed in his extensive hunting career. Their house is filled with fox, otter and wolverine pelts, whale vertebrae and walrus tusks.

Krumal grew up in Chicago, with little exposure to commercial fishing until his high-school swim coach made him a bet: If Krumal could outswim his coach in a race, he'd win a round-trip ticket to Alaska and a summer job on his coach's salmon boat.

Krumal had been a commercial fisherman ever since.

"Fishing was his passion. He knew the risk. He did what he loved and what he was good at," Bravo said.

"I guess I never figured it coming to this. We had so many plans. We were engaged for two years. We tried to set a date this summer, but it didn't work out. It would have been nice to do it all the way."

A memorial service is being planned. For information, call Urie at 784-3658.

-- Material from The Associated Press was included in this report.