Fight to the Death

Overview

The Steve Irwin manages to escape from the whalers security ship, Shonan Maru No.2, but soon the Shonan tracks the Irwin down and tails it again. Meanwhile, the Sam Simon lies in wait 400 miles due north of the entrance to the Ross Sea. Its primary job to function as a refueling vessel, so unless the Irwin or Barker need to be refueled, the Simon stays where it is. To the southeast, the Bob Barker sits dead in the water after Captain Peter Hammarstedt pushed the engine too hard. Suddenly, a ship appears on the Barker's radar making 15 knots. The bridge crew debates that if this ship is a harpoon ship, it should go faster. But the Nisshin Maru's top speed is about 15 knots, so Captain Peter thinks the Nisshin is coming towards him. The engine is operational again, but Peter orders that they sit and wait in the fog. All of a sudden, the Yushin Maru No.3 appears and starts to tail the Barker. Peter calls Captain Sid Chakravarty on the Irwin and tells him to send the helicopter ("Sea Wasp") out. The Sea Wasp spots the Nisshin and the other two Yushins. Soon the Barker catches up with the Nisshin, and soon the Irwin joins them. By February 1st, 2014, the Sea Shepherds have been tailing the Nisshin for one full week. Suddenly, all three harpoon ships get behind the Sea Shepherds, looking like they're getting ready to launch an attack to get them off the Nisshin's tail. Captain Peter states that the Yushins attacking the Sea Shepherds in bad weather is something that he and his comrades have not prepared for. He orders one of the Barker's boats, the Gemini, into the water to cut the steel cables the Yushins are towing. After several failed attempts to cut the cables, the Gemini's crew decides to back off because the weather is too rough. Captain Peter tries to hail the Gemini on the radio, but the boat crew refuses to answer him. The Nisshin soon slips out of both visual and radar range. Suddenly, the Yushin Maru No.3 closes in on the Barker's starboard side and collides with it.