Published: Thursday, Nov. 05, 2009
Los Osos fisherman's death is a loss to dwindling brethren
David Allen Kubiak apparently fell off his boat while setting traps for prawns; he was not wearing a protective suit
Comments (0) | 
E-Mail
Print
tool name
closeCentral Coast fishermen mourned one of their own on Wednesday, a day after 47-year-old David Allen Kubiak fell off his boat and was found five miles off the coast of Cambria.
Kubiak, of Los Osos, appeared to have fallen overboard sometime overnight Monday, sheriff’s spokesman Rob Bryn said. His body was discovered at 10:40 Tuesday morning.
The 39-foot boat, Axel, which is ported in Morro Bay, was spotted by someone on another fishing boat named Miss Allison, officials said.
Kubiak died from salt water drowning with complications from hypothermia, Bryn said.
A member of the local fishing community said the already small group suffered a tremendous loss with the death of the third-generation fisherman.
“David is one of us. A very good one, very well-liked by everyone,” said Jeremiah O’Brien, a member of the Morro Bay Commercial Fishermen’s Association, who has known Kubiak for about 30 years.
The Axel, which had drifted about 60 miles offshore when it was found, was towed in to the harbor about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Kubiak was fishing for prawns on his last trip, O’Brien said, adding that he also fished for crabs and salmon. Kubiak had been fishing since an early age mainly because his grandfather and father were also fishermen, O’Brien said.
“It’s always hard when it hits so close to home,” O’Brien said. “We feel terrible.”
O’Brien said Kubiak named the boat, which he purchased a few years ago, after his grandfather.
Bryn said Kubiak was likely laying out traps when he fell off the boat. He was tied to one of the buoys attached to the trap as a flotation device, Bryn said.
He was not wearing a protective suit designed to keep fishermen warm in cold water, Bryn said.
No foul play is suspected at this point. The FBI and Coast Guard are expected to look at the vessel, Bryn said.
What you should know about comments on SanLuisObispo.com
SanLuisObispo.com is happy to provide a forum for reader interaction, discussion, feedback and reaction to our stories. However, we reserve the right to delete inappropriate comments or ban users who can't play nice. See our full terms of service here.
Here are some rules of the road:
- Keep your comments civil. Don't insult one another or the subjects of our articles. If you think a comment violates our guidelines click the "report abuse" button. Responding to the comment will only encourage bad behavior.
- Don't use profanities, vulgarities or hate speech. This is a general interest news site. Sometimes, there are children present. Don't say anything in a way you wouldn't want your own child to hear.
- Do not attack other users; focus your comments on issues, not individuals.
- Stay on topic. Only post comments relevant to the article at hand. If you want to discuss an issue with a specific user, click on his profile name and leave him a public message.
- Do not copy and paste outside material into the comment box.
- Don't repeat the same comment over and over. We heard you the first time.
- Do not use the commenting system for advertising. That's spam and it isn't allowed.
- Don't use all capital letters. That's akin to yelling and not appreciated by the audience.
You should also know that The Tribune does not screen comments before they are posted. You are more likely to see inappropriate comments before our staff does, so we ask that you click the "report abuse" button to submit those comments for moderator review. You also may notify us via email at webmaster@sanluisobispo.com. Note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us the profile name of the user who made the comment. Remember, comment moderation is subjective. You may find some material objectionable that we won't and vice versa.
If you submit a comment, the username of your account will appear along with it. Users cannot remove their own comments once they have submitted them, but you may ask our staff to retract one of your comments by sending an email to webmaster@sanluisobispo.com. Again, make sure you note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us your profile name.
About comments
Reader comments on SanLuisObispo.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Tribune. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "report abuse" button below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.