Police confirmed two people died following a boat accident in Nappstraumen in Lofoten on Maundy Thursday. The deceased were a 34-year-old father and his 8-year-old son, according to police statements. The uncle and brother of the deceased, who were also on board the 40-foot sjark, survived the accident.
On April 2 just before 8 PM, police received a report of the capsized boat with three people on board, and the case was handled as a rescue operation. A rescue helicopter and rescue boat were dispatched immediately, and a nearby boat also headed to the area, according to operations leader Thomas Jarnæs Coe. At 8:45 PM, all three people were retrieved from the sea.
One person was picked up by the rescue boat, taken to a quay, met by an ambulance, and then transported onward. The two others were picked up by the rescue helicopter and taken to Bodø. According to HRS, there were two adults and one child in the boat, with the child between 8 and 10 years old.
One person was taken to the hospital in Gravdal, while the two others sent by rescue helicopter to UNN in Tromsø later died. The capsizing occurred at Flaget in Flakstad municipality, with police reporting the incident at 7:47 PM on Thursday. Nappstraumen is known for having a large difference between high and low tide, creating potentially challenging conditions.
Police prosecutor Eirik Magnus Blomli noted that based on information, conditions there can be challenging at times, and police are investigating if a breaking wave was a contributing cause to the accident. The capsized boat is currently floating upside down in the sea at about 20 meters depth, according to rescue leader Aleksander Åkerøy Hundal, who added that the Coast Guard has been notified to handle it further. Police prosecutor Aslak Breivik Vannebo confirmed the boat has been inspected with an underwater drone but has not yet been raised from its location.
The investigation into the accident is ongoing, with several interrogations conducted but more remaining, Vannebo stated. The police have a preliminary picture of the course of events but are still conducting investigations, including of the boat itself, though they have some idea of the cause but consider it too early to say anything certain. This fatal accident comes amid several other boat incidents reported across Norway in recent days.
Police received a report at 1:08 AM about a boat sinking off Nord-Frøya, where three people were on board the capsized vessel and swam to a holme on the mainland, reported as not injured but cold by operations leader Trond Hangaas. On Monday afternoon near Skjånes in Gamvik, three fishermen were hoisted into a rescue helicopter after their boat sank, according to multiple reports. In a separate incident, emergency services in Alta responded to a report of a man in the sea from a capsized leisure boat, with the person retrieved to land by a boat at 4:40 PM, appearing alert and being cared for by ambulance on site.
Police confirmed the person was alone in the boat and do not suspect others were in the sea. In Sweden, a separate maritime situation is unfolding with the boat MS Trio in Fyrisån river, where divers are on site to make the vessel float again, according to multiple reports. The boat MS Trio is a familiar blue-and-white vessel along the Fyrisån river, based on research from several sources.
Traces of leakage have been discovered on the boat, raising environmental concerns. In late February, Uppsala municipality decided to empty the boat Trio in Fyrisån to prevent it from sinking, as the owner could not do it themselves, according to multiple reports. The boat must be emptied, cleaned, and moored by the municipality, research indicates.
The owner cannot fix the problems due to illness, prompting municipal intervention. A few weeks ago, Uppsala municipality began cleaning the classic boat Trio, which risked sinking with environmentally hazardous material to the bottom of Fyrisån, research shows. This work began at the end of February while Fyrisån was still frozen and holding the boat Trio in place, after the owner could not clean it themselves.
It remains unclear how far the municipality got in the actual cleaning of MS Trio before the current situation developed, according to research sources. Authorities continue to investigate the exact cause of the fatal boat accident in Nappstraumen, with police examining whether tidal conditions played a role. The series of incidents highlights ongoing challenges with maritime safety in Norwegian waters, particularly during early spring conditions.
Environmental protection concerns are also emerging from the MS Trio situation in Sweden, where municipal authorities have taken steps to address a vessel at risk of sinking with potentially hazardous materials. In unrelated sports news, football player August Mikkelsen was not interested in a new loan and wants to fight for playing time in Bodø/Glimt, according to his own statements. Mikkelsen has had little playing time this season but says he now feels better physically.
Separately, Bodø/Glimt's Danish talent Mikkel Bro Hansen has reportedly chosen SEG as his new agency, according to Fabrizio Romano.