Many Gulf Fishermen Reluctant To Try Their Luck

Low seafood prices, BP paychecks keep many vessels from venturing out

The leaking oil well is capped, the oil is degrading and the coast is clear for fishermen to resume operations, but shrimper Tommy Verdin is not rushing out to sea. Like many other fishermen on the Gulf coast, he's eyeing the economic tides and worrying.

"Throughout the time we were out during this oil spill the price (of shrimp) stayed high," said Verdin. "As soon as they reopened, the price bottomed out."

When we first met Verdin on Grand Isle, La., in May, he had been forced to dock his 100-foot trawler "Cherish" amid a massive emergency response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. With fishing waters closed, Verdin later got a job running his boat as a "vessel of opportunity" on BP's payroll.

But with the cleanup effort waning and Gulf seafood prices in the tank, Verdin is one of many fishermen facing an uncertain future.

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