Lots of hype and speculation on this one (launch wheels fell off ramp before hull had a chance to float etc)
I read a post on another site---the guy maintained that even after they got her pumped out and righted, the vessel would not float upright on its own and had to be continually supported with slings from the boom of a crane.
It that is indeed the case, someone took some extreme liberties with hull design---way too much structure above the waterline.
From the "Builder":
“Since the casualty, there has been much speculation as to what happened, often with little or no supporting evidence,” the company said in a statement Thursday. “Northern Marine has launched more than 35 vessels, ranging from 57- to 151-foot motoryachts, with all of its trawler models having been launched using transport dollies at the same ramp where the accident occurred on the 18th. Northern Marine continues to have complete confidence in its trawler designs, all of which have been tank-tested and passed the same United States Coast Guard stability standards applied to commercial fishing vessels operating in the North Pacific.”
The builder said it considers the launch accident an exception.
“Since the accident, the project naval architect/professional engineer has confirmed that the yacht, as designed, had adequate stability with the amount of ballast aboard at the time of launch, provided that ‘severe heeling moments’ were not induced during the launch,“ the statement said.
“Unfortunately, it appears that just such a severe heeling moment did occur during the launch. While investigations as to the cause of the capsizing are continuing, the physical evidence on, and adjacent to, the launch ramp suggests that the dolly carrying the weight of the port stern of the yacht may have suddenly dropped off the edge of the boat ramp during the launch, causing the vessel to experience a sudden list to port from which it could not recover in its light condition for launch.”
You can imagine how much "lawyering up" is going on. The company laid off all its employees and shuttered its doors last week
