Body recovered from sunken boat
Coast Guard calls off search for fishing crew missing for more than 2 days
The Associated Press
Updated: 9:28 p.m. CT Jan 29, 2007
BOSTON - State divers recovered a body from a sunken fishing vessel in frigid waters off Nantucket on Monday, after the Coast Guard halted a search for four crewmen missing for more than two days.
The divers found the body around 2:30 p.m. in the wheelhouse of the 75-foot Lady of Grace after diving for nearly nine hours, state police said in a statement Monday night. The body, which has not been identified, was taken to the state medical examiner's office in Boston.
Poor visibility from leaking oil previously prevented divers from locating anyone who could have been trapped in the vessel.
The Coast Guard had suspended its search earlier Monday, saying rescuers had exhausted all chances to save the crew.
The vessel, found submerged on Sunday, was lying on its side, 36 feet beneath the surface, and its inflatable life raft was still in its case and attached to the boat, the Coast Guard said. The cause of the sinking had not been determined.
At the time the boat went missing, the wind was blowing at about 30 to 35 mph with 8- to 10-foot waves, the Coast Guard said.
The Lady of Grace was owned by Santos Fishing Corp. of New Bedford.
The men have been identified as the captain, Antonio Barroqueiro, and crew members Rogerio Vendura, Mario Farinha and Joao Silva. Barroqueiro was from Fairhaven; hometowns of the others were not released.
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