The Icelandic Coast Guard helicopter winched four crew to safety after longliner Einar Guðnason ÍS-303 grounded on rocks at the outer edge of Súgundafjörður in north-western Iceland.
A mayday call was received at 2200 on Wednesday night and rescue teams set out for the scene. Weather conditions were not bad, but a heavy swell and waves breaking on the rocks prevented the locally-based lifeboat from approaching, and rescue teams had to approach from the shore instead.
The boat was quickly jammed between rocks on the shore, with waves breaking over it.
The Coast Guard helicopter was on the scene at 2342 and the four crew were quickly winched on board and taken to Ísafjörður. There were no injuries to the crew.
Coast Guard vessel Týr was due at the site to examine conditions and the options for retrieving the vessel from the rocks, but according to subsequent reports, Einar Guðnason is a total loss and this represents a serious blow to fish processing in Suðureyri.
The 11.96 metre Einar Guðnason was built at the Trefjar yard in 2015 as Indriði Kristins.
