A Sudden Swipe at Sea, and Lives Changed Forever

America’s oldest fishing port still lives by the bounty of the sea. All too often, Gloucester’s mariners also die by the force of the sea, as the women who wait on shore were reminded this week.

Just as the town prepared to dedicate a monument to families of lost fishermen, word came that three more were missing in the oceanic equivalent of a hit-and-run accident Sunday. The sole surviving crewman of the Starbound, an 83-foot trawler, said the craft sank swiftly after a collision with a larger vessel.

Capt. Joe Marcantonio, who escaped on a self-inflating raft, told authorities the impact felt like a car wreck. Marcantonio said the oncoming ship disappeared in heavy fog.

Coast Guard officials said Wednesday they were inspecting a Russia-owned tanker that was detained in Newfoundland after damage was discovered on its hull. However, Lt. Michael Bolz stressed that the Virgo, a 590-foot oil tanker, was one of more than a dozen ships under investigation.

Late Wednesday, the Coast Guard said it was expanding the search to all East Coast ports.

In a community famous for fishing since 1623, the sad duty of planning a funeral for the one sailor whose body was recovered--and a weekend memorial for the two still missing--was all too familiar.

“It happens, it happens,” said Angela SanFilippo, president of the Gloucester Fishermen’s Wives Assn. “But to be run down by a tanker? You think that the ocean is three times bigger than the earth, and these things can’t happen.”

Coast Guard Rear Adm. George Naccara told the Gloucester Daily Times on Tuesday that it was unlikely that no one on the larger vessel would have felt or heard the impact of colliding with the Starbound. He also questioned why a ship that probably carried radar had not detected the smaller boat.

“Perhaps it was inoperable. Perhaps someone was asleep on the watch,” Naccara said. “Perhaps they were just not paying attention. There’s quite a realm of possibilities, but we may never know for sure.”

The Virgo was one of four ships bound for Canada that passed through the area on the night of the collision that have been inspected; three others were cleared. The ship arrived in the remote oil refinery port of Come by Chance, Newfoundland, with a large scrape down its starboard side, the Coast Guard said.

Canadian officials reportedly seized the Virgo’s logs and asked the crew to remain on board.

SanFilippo said she could feel no rage toward whatever vessel caused the Starbound to sink.

Rather, she blamed the event on “fog and destiny” and said navigators from other countries should be better informed about the type of fishing that goes on in this region.

“They need to learn that in this area there are fishing boats that fish,” she said. “I don’t know if they know. They come from all over the world, these tankers. These people, they have no knowledge that this is a heavy-duty fishing grounds. They need to keep their eyes open.”

SanFilippo, sipping strong Italian coffee from a demitasse, said she had visited the dead men’s families to discuss the funeral arrangements.

In an office above the harbor where her husband, John, motors out alone every day in search of groundfish, SanFilippo sat waiting for a call from Boston’s Cardinal Bernard Law, who will preside at Saturday’s services.

“I was in shock on Sunday morning,” SanFilippo said. “I just stood there looking at the ocean. I felt so sad, so angry. I was talking to the universe, saying, ‘God, we’re supposed to be strong. But you’re really testing us.’ ”

Monday’s ceremony dedicating a bronze and granite statue honoring the families of lost fishermen went on as scheduled, with 600 visitors from around the world. The Gloucester fisherman’s wives group is the oldest such organization in the country, and one of a handful internationally. The women stay in close touch, sharing sadness and success.

Events like the sinking of the Starbound draw an already-tight community closer, these women agreed. Already, the fishermen’s wives group has spoken to accountants about setting up a fund for the families of the three men lost Sunday.

“No matter what,” said Rosie Vitale, whose husband fishes with their son, “these are family boats.”

Fathers, sons and brothers set out to sea, leaving behind wives, mothers, daughters. The women on shore worry constantly.

“As soon as this happened,” said Nina Groppo, another Gloucester fisherman’s wife, “my daughter--she’s 19--turned to my husband and said, ‘When are you going to get out of this?’ ”