The U.S. Coast Guard has officially suspended the search operation for missing crew members from the commercial fishing vessel Lily Jean, which sank approximately 25 miles off the coast of Cape Ann, Massachusetts. The decision came after exhaustive search efforts yielded only a debris field, one deceased individual, and an unoccupied life raft.
The incident began early Friday morning when the Coast Guard received an automated emergency alert from the vessel’s distress beacon, notably absent of any mayday call. Seven crew members were reported aboard the 42-foot scallop dragger at the time of the tragedy. Captain Jamie Frederick, commander of Coast Guard Sector Boston, described the suspension as an ‘incredibly difficult’ decision, stating that all reasonable efforts had been exhausted by Saturday.
The Lily Jean and its skipper were well-known figures, having been featured on the History Channel’s fishing miniseries ‘Nor’easter Men.’ The vessel’s captain was described by state Senator Bruce Tarr as ‘one of the kindest, nicest individuals’ and ‘among the best’ in the Gloucester fishing community, with deep family ties to the tradition.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey expressed being ‘heartbroken’ by the tragedy, emphasizing on social media that fishermen are ‘core to the history, economy and culture of Gloucester.’ The port, America’s oldest working fishing harbor, was previously depicted in the film ‘The Perfect Storm,’ based on the similar loss of the Andrea Gail and its crew.
The identities of the recovered individual and missing crew members have not been publicly released as the investigation continues into the cause of the sinking.