The U.S. Coast Guard is searching for survivors after the 72-foot fishing vessel Lily Jean sank about 25 miles off Cape Ann. An EPIRB alert at ~6:50 a.m. triggered the response; crews found debris, an unoccupied life raft and one recovered body. An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter, a Station Gloucester small-boat team and the cutter Thunder Bay are participating in the ongoing search. Governor Maura Healey offered state support and local leaders expressed concern for the Gloucester fishing community.
Coast Guard Searches for Survivors After 72-Foot Fishing Vessel Lily Jean Sinks Off Cape Ann; One Body Recovered
Commercial fishing boats docked in Gloucester Harbor, Mass.(AP Newsroom)
The U.S. Coast Guard is conducting an active search for survivors after the 72-foot commercial fishing vessel Lily Jean sank roughly 25 miles off Cape Ann, Massachusetts. The vessel had seven people on board, including a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) observer, when authorities received an emergency signal early Friday morning.
Coast Guard watchstanders received an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) alert at about 6:50 a.m., registered to the Lily Jean. Crews attempted to contact the vessel but received no response and issued an urgent marine information broadcast (UMIB) to alert mariners in the area.
Search-and-Rescue Response
Responding units included an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew launched from Air Station Cape Cod and a small-boat team dispatched from Station Gloucester. The Coast Guard cutter Thunder Bay was also diverted to assist in the search-and-rescue operation.
Rescue teams located floating debris near the coordinates linked to the EPIRB activation, along with an unoccupied life raft and one recovered body. Coast Guard officials said crews will continue combing the area for survivors as search operations proceed.
Local Reaction and Background
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey said the state has offered full support to local officials and the Coast Guard. In a statement she said she is "heartbroken" over the sinking of the Lily Jean and that her thoughts are with the crew's families and the Gloucester fishing community during this difficult time.
The vessel's captain, Gus Sanfilippo, and members of his crew were featured in a 2012 episode of the History Channel series "Nor’Easter Men," which followed a fishing expedition in hazardous weather. Sanfilippo is a fifth-generation commercial fisherman who fishes for haddock, lobster and flounder.
State Senator Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester), a friend of Sanfilippo, described him to The Associated Press as "skilled" and warm, and said the Gloucester community will show its characteristic resilience.
Gloucester sits on Cape Ann about 30 miles north of Boston. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Help us improve.
