The U.S. Coast Guard has located one unresponsive body and an unoccupied life raft since the search for the seven passengers began

Gus Sanfilippo

A fisherman recounted his final call with Gus Sanfilippo, captain of the Lily Jean, which took place just hours before the boat sank off the coast of Gloucester, Mass.

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) received an emergency position-indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) alert in regard to the 72-foot fishing vessel on Friday, Jan. 30, according to a USCG news release. While the agency attempted to contact the vessel, a lack of response prompted the issuance of an urgent marine information broadcast.

Seven people were reported to be onboard the vessel. One unresponsive body and an unoccupied life raft associated with the vessel were found, according to the USCG.

Captain Sebastian Noto, a friend of Lily Jean’s captain, told NBC10 Boston that he spoke with Sanfilippo just hours before tragedy struck.

Fishing boat sinks off Gloucester

Gloucester Fisherman’s Memorial in Gloucester, Mass.
AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty
“I was about 30 miles east of him,” he told the outlet. “We usually work together all the time. We are like glue man. We give a lot of information back-and-forth.”

On the day that the Lily Jean sank, Noto recalled talking to Sanfilippo around 3 a.m. and hearing him say, “I quit. It’s too cold.”

“He was calm,” he added of the ship’s captain. “He just couldn’t do the cold because the air holes was freezing.”

When he realized that there was no sign of his friend several hours later, Noto quickly realized that they were looking at a “serious situation.” And if he were to guess what led to the tragic incident, he suspected it could have been a result of the bilge pump malfunctioning.

“Just a guess, I could be wrong you know because even if the bilge is taking water, you got plenty of time to call Mayday,” he noted. “You got plenty of time to get into the survival suit, life raft. The boat takes time to sink.”

Although six people from the ship remain missing, the USCG announced on Jan. 31 that, after covering “approximately 1,047 square miles over 24 hours using multiple aircraft, cutter and small boats,” all reasonable efforts had been exhausted and the search would be suspended.

“The decision to suspend the search was incredibly difficult,” Capt. Jamie Frederick, commander of Coast Guard Sector Boston, wrote in a press release. “Our thoughts and prayers are with all the family members and friends of the lost crew of the Lilly Jean, and with the entire Gloucester community during this heartbreaking time.”