Captain Sig Hansen Is Not Happy About His Brother’s Secret Health Issue I Deadliest Catch

Grinding to Success: The Northwestern’s Unforgiving Season

Aboard the 125-foot Northwestern, Captain Sig Hansen and his crew are no strangers to grueling conditions. As they near the end of a challenging king crab season, the team pushes through sleepless nights, aching muscles, and mounting pressure to fill their tanks with red gold. However, the demanding lifestyle at sea reveals cracks in the foundation—both on deck and in the family dynamic.

Sleepless Pursuit of a Big Payday

With a daunting king crab quota nearly complete, Sig and his crew work tirelessly. “If we can get twice through the gear with a decent average, we can fill this thing. That’s the goal,” said Sig, as the team toiled to load their final pots. The stakes were high, with over 200,000 pounds of crab left to catch and an even larger bairdi quota looming.

While the crew worked in overdrive, Edgar Hansen—the ship’s deck boss and Sig’s younger brother—quietly battled his own challenge: an injured back. “It’s a shooting pain down my back and arms,” Edgar admitted, though he kept his struggles hidden from Sig. The burden of stepping into a leadership role for the bairdi season added to his stress. “This isn’t just a little food scrap,” Sig reminded him. “It’s a decent-sized quota with real money at stake.”

A Family Rift Below Deck

As the crew reached the tail end of king crab season, Edgar’s physical condition deteriorated. When Sig discovered Edgar resting in his bunk instead of running the deck, he summoned him to the wheelhouse for answers.

“What’s going on out there?” Sig demanded. “Why are you in your bunk?”

Edgar explained the extent of his injury, revealing that the pain had persisted for weeks. “I can’t drive. I couldn’t drive right now,” Edgar confessed, acknowledging that his condition would prevent him from captaining the boat during the bairdi season.

The revelation hit Sig hard. “You signed a contract saying you were fit for duty,” he said. “This is over $400,000 on the line, and you’re telling me I have to run the boat for bairdi?”

Sig’s frustration was evident, but so was his concern. While Edgar’s commitment to the family business was undeniable, Sig questioned whether Edgar’s health should take precedence. “I’m losing my sympathy here,” he admitted. “If this were a corporate office, he’d have been gone like that.”

A Season to Remember

Despite the tension, the Northwestern crew completed their king crab season with resounding success. “This has been one for the books,” Sig reflected. The final pots yielded impressive numbers, with some averaging 62 crabs per string. “We haven’t gone around the clock like this in years, but it sure paid off,” he said, praising his crew’s resilience.

As the team celebrated their victory, the focus shifted to the upcoming bairdi season—a grind that would push them even further. However, for Edgar, the season’s end marked a turning point. Sig, recognizing the severity of Edgar’s condition, made the difficult decision to send him home for medical evaluation. “No offense to Edgar, but I think we need to ship him out,” Sig said. “He needs to be checked out by a doctor.”

Looking Ahead

The Northwestern’s king crab season ended on a high note, but the challenges ahead are daunting. With Edgar out of commission and a massive bairdi quota looming, Sig faces the tough task of maintaining the Northwestern’s legacy.

For Sig, family and business have always been deeply intertwined, but this season has underscored the fragile balance between the two. As he prepares for the next chapter, one thing is clear: the grind never stops on the Bering Sea.