Tag Archives: Stonington Conn.
Connecticut: Organizers focused on ‘the important things’ ahead of 68th annual Blessing of the Fleet
Stonington – In late 1989, rescue teams and U.S. Coast Guard personnel spent more than 11 days combing 10,000 square miles of ocean off the coast of Nantucket using three aircraft carriers and two cutters following the disappearance of the Heidi Marie, a 72-foot commercial lobster boat out of Stonington that went missing just before Thanksgiving. The search teams found evidence of possible distress that was believed to have killed the boat’s five occupants, Capt. Mark Middleton and crew members Arthur Banks, Kenneth Raymond Gould, Michael Lane and Ray Morris. Their bodies were never found, but their story and the stories of other local fisherman who died will not be forgotten, thanks in part to a long-rooted tradition that will return this weekend when St. Mary Church in Stonington hosts its 68th annual Blessing of the Fleet. >click to read< 22:10
Stonington 67th Annual Blessing of the Fleet will go on despite Coronavirus pandemic
The 67th annual Blessing of the Fleet with not be a casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic. Unlike other traditional events across the region that have been canceled due to the virus, organizers of the Blessing will hold a scaled back event Sunday morning in the borough that is designed to preserve its most meaningful parts. “It will be short but we want to make sure we honor the fishermen especially since we lost one fishermen this year,” said Mike Crowley of the Blessing of the Fleet Committee. “This is why we do this.” The Blessing prays for the success and safety of local fishermen over the coming year and remembers Town Dock fleet members who have died at sea. Their names are listed on the memorial at the dock. This year’s event will be even more solemn than usual because it was just in April that fisherman Charles Lathrop, 50, of Westerly, died after falling overboard from the local scallop boat F/V Invictus off the coast of New Jersey. >click to read< 11:49
Fire at Town Dock – Lobster boat sinks, another significantly damaged
A lobster boat sank, another was significantly damaged and a 50-foot section of the 
was destroyed by a fire reported around 4 a.m. Wednesday. The fishing vessel Lindy was on fire when the Stonington Borough Fire Department responded. The boat eventually sank at the dock. The Martha Elizabeth, docked next to the Lindy, suffered significant damage but remained afloat. The Connecticut State Fire Marshal arrived on the scene at 9:30 a.m., and is investigating the cause of the fire. Read the rest here 08:26
Blessing of the Fleet honors Stonington fishermen
Stonington – The commercial fishing industry, its traditions, lore, people and tragedies meshed together Sunday at the 62nd annual Blessing of the Fleet, a summertime staple that is trying to rebound after waning interest, bad weather and the depressed fishing economy threatened the event in the past. John Gomes, the event’s longtime emcee, told the few hundred people who gathered at the Town Dock during a light drizzle for the ceremony that the ceremony and festival have to survive. “It’s our identity,” ,,, Read the rest here 19:43
