'Deadliest Catch' Deckhand Slammed for 'Absolute Stupidity' Following Costly Mistake

Deadliest Catch deckhand Ronnie James is in hot water after making a costly mistake on Summer Bay Captain "Wild" Bill Wichrowski's watch.

During Tuesday's all-new episode of the Discovery show, James sheepishly approaches his boss to admit he forgot to grab bait to put in the crab pots while ashore.

"So uh, when we were in town, we forgot to grab bait setups," he admits, adding that there are only 25 jars on board. "We are short some bait jars."

Without bait, obviously, it's pretty hard to catch crab, and with a massive quota like the Summer Bay's this is a major mistake to be making at this point in the season.

"Deckhand Ronnie James' job is to keep the Summer Bay stocked with bait and bait jars," narrator Mike Rowe explains. "Essential, if you want to bait a wide area."

Wild Bill reacts just how you'd imagine, losing it on his deckhand. But there's no going back now.

"I mean I can't change it. It's f—ing stupidity," he grouses. "It's absolute stupidity. You'll fill what we got."

He added, "I'm speechless right now."

Jame's mistake definitely hasn't endeared him to his fellow crew members, who are also dealing with a shortage of bait setups.

And while the shamed deckhand does his best to keep his head down while doing his best to use the bait they have, Wild Bill tries to stay positive for the sake of his crew.

"I wanted to heavy bait the pots," he says, sighing. "You have a plan and it changes, that's the way this s— goes."

Instead of casting a wide net like he had planned, Wild Bill decides to focus on a spot he's had luck before, hoping that he can pull something off after all.

"Crew management is one of the toughest parts of the job," he says, resigned to the mistakes his crew is making on this excursion.

In the end, Wild Bill's "surgical" strategy brings up next to nothing in the first 10 pots.

"First impression of this one is no frickin' bueno," Bill says, defeated, but adding, "Anything could happen," on a hopeful note.

His optimism pays off, with a number of bountiful pots coming in next.

"Got a little hope," he says. "Cha-ching!"

But with only 11 bait set ups left on board, can the Summer Bay keep this momentum up?

Deadliest Catch airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Discovery.

Photo credit: Discovery