BOSTON — The Coast Guard said Monday it has launched a formal investigation into the dismasting of the commercial passenger vessel Grace Bailey off the coast of Maine in which a mast fell and killed one person and injured three others.
The main mast of the schooner Grace Bailey splintered and fell onto the deck on October 9. The collapse killed Dr. Emily Mecklenburg, 40, a physician from Rockland.
There were 33 people on board the Grace Bailey when the mast collapsed. The other three injured people, who suffered head and back injuries, were transported to hospitals afterward.
Coast Guard officials said the formal inquiry is intended to determine what led to the collapse and identify anything that can help improve maritime safety in the future.
“As a member of a lifesaving service, I am deeply saddened by this tragedy,” said Capt. Amy Florentino, commander of Coast Guard Sector Northern New England. “The Coast Guard is committed to conducting a thorough investigation aimed at identifying causal factors that will prevent an accident like this from reoccurring.”
The owners of the vessel, the Grace Bailey Navigation Company of Rockland, have no comment on the investigation, said Nicole Jacques, a spokesperson for the company. The vessel carries tourists off the Maine coast and was returning from a four-day trip when the mast snapped late in the morning of Oct. 9.
While the Grace Bailey was old, built in 1882, there are several older vessels that carry passengers off the Maine coast. The Lewis R. French and Stephen Taber were both built in 1871, Jacques said.
All of those vessels have been refurbished multiple times over the years, and most of the planks and other components have been replaced, Jacques said. The mast that splintered was not Grace Bailey’s original mast, she said.
The schooner was about 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) east of Rockland harbor, the Coast Guard said. The schooner’s full length is 118 feet (36 meters) and it was in compliance with requirements when it underwent an annual inspection in May, Coast Guard officials have said.
For additional questions, please contact D1PublicAffairs@uscg.mil
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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