Why were the fishing crew stranded on Oct. 10th?

Eleven fishing boat crew who had been stranded since October in a remote part of Russia’s Far East have been rescued after sheltering nearly three months at an abandoned military base. The eight men and three women took refuge at the base after their small boats collided on Oct. 10. Their attempts to fix one of the boats did not succeed and they had to remain at the abandoned base where there were only flour and cooking fat. Other supplies at the base, which was abandoned in 2003, included Christmas ornaments, and the crew members put them up on a small tree inside their quarters. But supplies began running low and early this week, five set off on foot across snow fields, on Friday, after four days of trudging, they reached a working military radio station. The center called rescuers, and helicopters were sent to take the 11 to the regional capital.