Tag Archives: F/V Anna Mary
The First Montauk Blessing Of The Fleet Post COVID Brings Great Joy
The message that permeated on every vessel that took part in the first Montauk Blessing of the Fleet post COVID was that it was in fact a blessing it was happening at all. A year ago, the whole country was locking down, so many traditional East End events were canceled, and there was no annual Blessing of the Fleet in Montauk.,, On the F/V Anna Mary, the boat of Captain Anthony Sosinski and Fisherman John “Johnny Loads” Aldridge, family and friends celebrated with cold beverages, pasta salads, chips and dips, and an assortment of tasty home baked cookies. Sosinski displayed his talent of navigating the boat throughout the 75 or so commercial boats of all sizes that paraded from in the Harbor out to the Block Island Sound. Aldridge and his family and friends know what it is to feel God’s mercy. Eight years ago, “Johnny Loads” fell overboard only to be recused the next day by a 
Coast Guard helicopter as almost every commercial Montauk fishing craft was out there searching for him. >click to read< 12:25
Montauk Blessing of the Fleet – This drone footage by Joanna Steidle shows decorated vessels passing by robed clergymen, who give the boats their blessing. Onlookers can be seen gathered on the docks and shoreline. >click to watch<
Review: “A Speck in the Sea”, A Story of Survival and Rescue by John Aldridge and Anthony Sosinski
Man overboard! Montauk lobsterman John Aldridge only wished someone had shouted out that little missive the summer evening of 2013. But when the skilled sailor (he was a fisherman for two decades) slid off the flat open stern and into the sea while preparing his boat for a night of fishing, the two-man crew was “dead asleep and snoring” in the nose of the boat. The required life vest, a safety must aboard every commercial fishing boat? “We never wear ours,” Aldridge said, recounting his near-drowning almost four years ago. >click to read< 20:53
Inside Montauk’s commercial fishing industry
Montauk is not only the biggest commercial fishing hub in New York, it’s one of the largest in the Northeast.,,, Unlike Gurneys’ or the iconic Shagwong Tavern, Montauk’s commercial fishing boats don’t attract investors eager to keep their businesses afloat, and their property (boats, gear and permits) is not easily transferable from one person to another.,,, John Nolan, his wife, Laurie, and their son John Nolan III are owner-operators of the F/V Seacapture,,, >click to read< 07:35
Montauk Lobstermen Recall Their ‘Speck In The Sea’ Ordeal
John Aldridge was literally little more than a speck in the sea after being thrown off his lobster boat, the Anna Mary, on July 24, 2013. A crowd was all ears on Friday evening at the Montauk Library for an interactive lecture and book-signing of “A Speck in the Sea” headed by Debbie Tuma, a journalist and Montauk native, as Mr. Aldridge explained the ordeal of being lost at sea for 12 hours on what had started out as a routine lobster fishing trip. Then she asked for Mr. Sosinki’s take on the lost-at-sea misadventure.,,, When he realized Mr. Aldridge was missing, the boat was 62 miles from land—it had been 8 miles off the shore when they last saw Mr. Aldridge. >click to read<13:28
A Lobsterman’s Tale of Survival
The darkest moment of John Aldridge’s 12 terrifying hours of floating alone in the Atlantic Ocean came in the first moments after he was flung off his lobster boat. “You hit the water, you’re in such disbelief,” he recalls. “Nobody in the world knows you’re missing. Their life is happening right now, but your life is done! Right now, in the middle of the ocean, today’s the day you’re going to die.” Not only did Aldridge survive — by pulling a James Bond-like maneuver to turn his boots into flotation aids — but, nearly four years later, he’s still working in the profession that put him in so much danger. And he’s retelling the remarkable tale in a book just released. Click here to read the story 10:37
‘A Speck in the Sea’ tells tale of boyhood pals’ brush with death on Long Island fishing excursion
After more than 10 hours in the frigid ocean 40 miles south of Montauk Point, John Aldridge didn’t know if there was any fight left in him. It was at that moment when the cruel sea taunted him with salvation — only to snatch it away. No more than 400 yards away he spied the Anna Mary, his lobster boat, the one he’d tumbled overboard from in the wee hours of the night. His crewmate Mike Migliaccio stood on the roof, binoculars plastered to his face, desperately scanning the sea. Migliaccio was a man possessed. He knew Aldridge’s time was running out. How was it possible Mike didn’t see him? Aldridge had spent all his energy affixing himself to a colorful buoy. But the ocean’s glare hid Aldridge from sight and the Anna Mary steamed away. “A Speck in the Sea” is the personally narrated account of Aldridge and his partner Anthony Sosinski about July 24, 2013, a day the unthinkable happened. click here to read the story 14:17
“It’s nothing short of a miracle,” – Captain: ‘I Wasn’t Coming Home Without Him’
Anthony Sosinski, partner of rescued fisherman John Aldridge talks about his childhood friend’s struggle for survival at sea. continued@easthamptonpatch
BREAKING: Fisherman John Aldridge, a crewmember of the F/V Anna Mary has been rescued.
Coast Guard Station Montauk confirms John Aldridge has been rescued and being transported to Station Cape Cod. Petty Officer Jetta Disco, a Coast Guard spokesperson, said Aldridge was found 43 miles south of Montauk Point. His boat was five miles off of Montauk Point. Aldridge is being treated for exposure, hypothermia and dehydration. The Coast Guard was assisted by a large contingency of commercial fishing vessel’s.
Here’s the “Official” rundown. John Aldridge, a crewmember of the commercial fishing vessel Anna Mary, was found after going overboard. from uscgnews
Today was your lucky day John. I’m happy for you, and relieved for your loved ones. Best wishes in your new life that started with the helicopter lift!
Coast Guard searching for missing fisherman John Aldridge, a crewmember of the F/V Anna Mary,near Montauk
Coast Guard watchstanders at Sector Long Island Sound, in New Haven, Conn., were contacted by a local fisherman, at approximately 6:30 a.m., reporting that a male fisherman had gone missing based on missed watch relief times and being
unresponsive to callbacks from another fishing vessel at 4 a.m. continued@uscgnews
