Kin Of Dead Crewmen Upset By Salvage Plans

Kin Of Dead Crewmen Upset By Salvage Plans
By Ed Hayward
Boston Herald
July 28, 1999

As divers worked yesterday to raise the wreck of the clamming boat Cape Fear, survivors of the two crewmen killed in the January sinking were dismayed by the boat owner's plan to repair the vessel and return it to sea.

An attorney for the survivors of Steven Reeves, 28, of New Bedford and Paul F. Martin, 35, of Fairhaven said relatives hope investigators find out why the 112-foot boat went down in a storm, Jan. 8, 3 miles of Cuttyhunk Island.

But relatives are dismayed by the decision of boat owner Warren Alexander to return the craft to sea to dredge for ocean quahogs, large clams used in prepared foods like clam chowder.

"The families are sick about this decision," said Carolyn M. Latti, an attorney with Latti Associates. "When you have a loss at sea, the ship becomes the grave. Now they're pulling it up and they'll put it right back out there."

Neither crewman's body is on the ship.

In addition, Latti said she will seek a federal court order this morning allowing her expert witnesses to examine the vessel as she prepares wrongful death cases totalling $12 million in claims.

Calls to Alexander's attorney and the offices of Alexander's Atlantic Seafood offices in New Bedford, where his clam boat fleet is based, were not returned.

But a company official reached yesterday confirmed plans to return the Cape Fear to work once it is repaired at a Fairhaven shipyard.

The official, who requested anonymity, declined to respond to Latti's comments or discuss specifics about repairs.

Divers working for a salvage firm hired by Alexander strapped a sling around the ship yesterday, preparing to right the vessel so it can be raised by crane mounted on a 2,400-ton barge, said US Coast Guard Lt. Lisa Campbell.

Campbell said it may take another day and a half to rig the sling so the boat can be brought to the surface, where it will be drained of seawater, fuel and oil. When afloat, the ship will be towed to a Fairhaven shipyard.

There, the Coast Guard investigators will survey the vessel for clues to the sinking, which plunged the five-man crew into the icy waters of the Atlantic just an hour from the mouth of New Bedford Harbor.

Campbell said repairs will not be allowed to begin on the boat until the investigators are finished with their work.

"Obviously we don't want him to change the condition of the boat until we are finished and satisfied with our survey," said Campbell. "Obviously they're interested in repairing the boat and getting it back in the water as soon as possible. We're interested in doing a thorough survey."

The survey is the only remaining component left in the inquiry being overseen by Capt. George Matthews, who has presided over public hearings in the case since January.

Testimony by crew members pointed to lack of familiarity with safety procedures and drills. Reeves, who was lost at sea, was last heard fighting for his life and struggling to put on his survival suit. Martin's body washed up on a Westport beach, his survival suit unzipped to the waist.

In addition, the vessel was overloaded by several tons at the time of the tragedy. Crewmen also testified a hatch door would not close completely above a deep hold in the stern.