Current:Home > InvestNOAA warns boaters to steer clear of 11 shipwrecks, including WWII minesweeper, in marine sanctuary east of Boston -EliteFunds
NOAA warns boaters to steer clear of 11 shipwrecks, including WWII minesweeper, in marine sanctuary east of Boston
Algosensey Quantitative Think Tank Center View
Date:2025-04-11 06:14:36
Federal authorities are asking fishing vessels to steer clear of 11 shipwrecks located in a marine sanctuary east of Boston, warning that they could "cause serious damage" to the many historically significant ships that have gone down in the waters since the 19th century.
In a news release issued Wednesday, NOAA is requesting that vessels avoid the shipwreck sites in the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, which sits between Cape Ann and Cape Cod. Though dozens of shipwrecks lie in the sanctuary, NOAA singled out 11 wrecks for boaters to avoid, including the World War II minesweeper USS Heroic, the trawler Josephine Marie and the 55-foot North Star. The other eight wrecks are unknown vessels, the agency said.
"NOAA recognizes that fishermen want to avoid shipwrecks to ensure the safety of the crew and because of the risks of damaging their gear when the gear gets hung up on a wreck or other objects on the ocean floor," the agency said, while providing a map and coordinates for the doomed vessels. "Hanging up on a wreck can also cause serious damage to shipwrecks that have historical significance."
The sanctuary said that shipwrecks are crucial to the area because they provide habitat and refuge for a variety of marine life and are "memorial sites representing the last resting place of fishermen and sailors."
In addition to the USS Heroic, the Josephine Marie and the North Star, there are at least 10 other named vessels lying on the ocean floor in the sanctuary, including the steamship Portland which was sunk by a storm in 1898, killing all 192 people on board, and the steamship Pentagoet, which lost 18 crewmembers in the same storm.
The most recent ship to sink in the sanctuary is the 60-foot Patriot, which went down on Jan. 3, 2009, killing both crewmembers on board.
The sanctuary says its "shipwrecks serve as time capsules of our nation's maritime history."
Historic shipwrecks are protected under the National Historic Preservation Act and the National Marine Sanctuaries Act as well as other federal regulations.
The Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary is now a premier destination for whale watching. Last year, scientists at the sanctuary urged the public to be on the lookout for two missing research tags used to study large whales, noting they could "wash ashore anywhere along" the coast.
- In:
- Massachusetts
- Shipwreck
- Gloucester News
Stephen Smith is a senior editor for CBSNews.com.
veryGood! (1856)
Related
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Why Gerry Turner Was the Perfect Choice to Be the First Golden Bachelor
- Turn it down? Penn State practices without music to prepare for road game at Northwestern
- Judge rejects an 11th-hour bid to free FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried during his trial
- 'Vanderpump Rules' star DJ James Kennedy arrested on domestic violence charges
- Iowa authorities rescue nearly 100 dogs from apparent puppy mill during routine welfare check
- Judge rejects an 11th-hour bid to free FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried during his trial
- TikTok says it regrets Indonesia’s decision to ban e-commerce sales on social media platforms
- The White House is cracking down on overdraft fees
- 'Good Samaritan' hospitalized after intervening on attack against 64-year-old woman: Police
Ranking
- Civic engagement nonprofits say democracy needs support in between big elections. Do funders agree?
- Hollywood actors to resume negotiations with studios on Monday as writers strike ends
- Canada's House speaker resigns after honoring man who fought for Nazis during Zelenskyy visit
- Tropical Storm Rina forms in the Atlantic Ocean, the National Hurricane Center says
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- Jesus Ayala, teen accused in Las Vegas cyclist hit-and-run, boasts he'll be 'out in 30 days'
- The Turkish government withdraws from a film festival after a documentary was reinstated
- New York AG plans to call Trump and his adult sons as witnesses in upcoming trial
Recommendation
What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
Drive a Hyundai or Kia? See if your car is one of the nearly 3.4 million under recall for fire risks
Sen. Bob Menendez pleads not guilty in federal court to bribery and extortion
Chinese immigrant workers sue over forced labor at illegal marijuana operation on Navajo land
Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
Hispanic Influencers Share Curated Fashion Collections From Amazon's The Drop
Suspect sought in fatal hit-and-run that may have been intentional: Authorities
McCarthy rejects Senate spending bill while scrambling for a House plan that averts a shutdown