By MICHAEL CASEY, Associated Press
BOSTON (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard on Friday found debris and a body after launching a search for a fishing vessel in distress off Massachusetts.
Related Articles
Judge to hear arguments as the man convicted of killing Laken Riley seeks a new trial
Polygamous sect’s sway has dwindled in twin towns on Arizona-Utah line. Residents enjoy new freedoms
Catherine O’Hara, Emmy-winning comedian of ‘Schitt’s Creek’ and ‘Home Alone’ fame, dies at 71
Fearing ICE, Native Americans rush to prove their right to belong in the US
Cheerios, Pringles, Nutella among thousand of products recalled over rodent, bird waste
The search began after the Coast Guard said it received an emergency alert from the 72-foot fishing vessel Lily Jean early Friday located about 25 miles off Cape Ann. It is unclear how many people were on the vessel.
The Coast Guard said it tried unsuccessfully to contact the vessel and then launched a search that included an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew, a small boat crew and the Coast Guard Cutter Thunder Bay.
They found a debris field and recovered one person from the water who was unresponsive. They also found an empty life raft.
At the time of the emergency alert, the National Weather Service said wind speeds out at sea were around 27 mph (24 knots) with waves around four feet high. It was 12 degrees with water temperatures about 39 degrees.
Gloucester Council President Tony Gross, a retired fisherman, called it a “huge tragedy for this community.”
“The families are just devastated at this point,” Gross said. “They are half full of hope and half full of dread, I would imagine.”
Gross described conditions on the water as “fishable” but that it wouldn’t take much for ice to build up on the vessel.
“That is what people are thinking right now, that there was ice buildup and that made the boat unstable,” he said.
Leave a Reply