February 2, 2026 — One person is dead, and six others are missing after a fishing boat sank off the coast of Gloucester.
Dominion Energy and Vineyard Wind Reach Milestones as Work Resumes
February 2, 2026 — Within days of resuming work at Dominion Energy’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project and Avangrid’s Vineyard Wind 1, both projects have marked key milestones. The projects argued they were at critical stages of construction in court and received preliminary injunctions to prevent the Trump administration from enforcing a stop-work order.
Dominion Energy provided a detailed update on the status of its project, reporting it has reached 71 percent completion and, critically, the first wind turbine generation was installed in January. The company’s massive wind turbine installation vessel, Charybdis (the only U.S.-flagged WTIV vessel), also began loading in December after a lengthy commissioning process and is deployed for the installations.
The presentation outlines that the project remains on track to generate its first power this quarter. Although after the delays due to the stop-work order from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, they have rescheduled completion to early 2027.
Fundraisers collect money for families of sunken Gloucester fishing boat’s crew
February 2, 2026 — As the Gloucester community mourns the loss of the seven people who were aboard a fishing boat that sank Friday off the coast of Cape Ann, fundraisers are collecting money for the families of two of vessel’s crew members.
Remembering Sean Therrien
Peabody resident Sean Therrien, 45, was identified as one of the people aboard the 72-foot vessel known as the “Lily Jean” by his partner, Rebecca Carp, and in a GoFundMe campaign. In a Friday Facebook post, Carp said she was heartbroken, and that she and Therrien had been together for 22 years.
“He was my best friend and love of my life,” she wrote.
Therrien was a Lynn native who graduated from Lynn Technical High School, according to the GoFundMe campaign. When he wasn’t working, he loved riding dirt bikes, four-wheeling, building and racing RC cars and spending time with his sons, 23-year-old Justin and 17-year-old Tyler.
“He was a hardworking family man whose life revolved around the people he loved most,” the campaign page reads. “ … Those who knew Sean will remember his great sense of humor, his generous heart, and the pride he took in providing for his family.”
In addition to his partner and sons, Therrien leaves behind his father, brother, two sisters and many other beloved family members and friends, according to the campaign. The GoFundMe campaign had raised just over $7,000 of its $9,000 goal as of Sunday afternoon.
“This fundraiser has been created to support Rebecca and Sean’s family as they face the unimaginable — helping with funeral arrangements, household needs, and the financial challenges that follow such a sudden loss,“ the campaign page reads. ”More than anything, it is meant to honor Sean’s life and surround his loved ones with the care and compassion he so freely gave to others.”
NOAA observer identified among victims of missing Gloucester fishing vessel
February 2, 2026 — The close-knit community of Gloucester came together Sunday, mourning the crew of the fishing vessel Lily Jean lost at sea in a tragic accident Friday, as shaken visitors piled flowers at the city’s iconic Fisherman’s Memorial and families huddled inside a stone church.
By the late afternoon, hundreds attended a memorial mass for those aboard the Lily Jean at St. Ann’s Church. At the beginning of the mass, the families of the vessel’s seven crew members lit candles in front of framed pictures of their lost loved ones.
“When we hurt, when we grieve, when we are in pain, we come together,” Rev. James Achadinha said during the somber service.
The full identities of the Lily Jean’s crew have not been shared officially. Coast Guard officials said over the weekend they estimated releasing the information Monday following family notifications.
But one of the crew has been identified by her family as 22-year-old federal fisheries observer Jada Samitt.
Samitt was on the Lily Jean about 25 miles off the coast of Cape Ann when the ship sank on Friday. The Coast Guard found debris and one body in the water. The Coast Guard looked for survivors for 24-hours before calling off the search Saturday during frigid winter conditions with seven-to-ten foot waves and 30-knot-winds.
Samitt had been on board as an observer for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fisheries.
MASSACHUSETTS: Coast Guard identifies all 7 crew members of fishing boat that sank of Gloucester coast
February 2, 2026 — The Coast Guard has officially identified all seven crew members who were aboard a fishing boat when it sank off the coast of Gloucester on Friday.
The seven crew members were:
- Accursio “Gus” Sanfilippo, captain
- Paul Beal Sr., crew
- Paul Beal Jr., crew
- John Rousanidis, crew
- Freeman Short, crew
- Sean Therrien, crew
- Jada Samitt, NOAA fisheries observer and crew
As of Sunday afternoon, family and friends of nearly all of the crew members had come forward to identify them.
MASSACHUSETTS: ‘Help us understand this loss’: As the victims of the Lily Jean begin to be identified, Gloucester grieves together
February 2, 2026 — Every pew and standing space at Saint Ann Church in this coastal city was filled Sunday with parishioners and members of the tight-knit fishing community. They came, church leaders said, to honor “the families and all of those who have died at sea,” after the Lily Jean, a 72-foot fishing vessel with seven people on board, sank offshore early Friday morning.
“In the Lord of sea and sky . . . help us understand this loss,” said the Rev. James Achadinha, his words echoing through the crowded sanctuary.
In a city long shaped by the sea, about 1,000 people gathered to mourn the seven people presumed dead. Two victims have been identified: Sean Therrien, 44, a Lynn native who had recently taken a winter job on the Lily Jean after being laid off from construction work, and Jada Samitt, a 22-year-old federal fisheries observer from Virginia. The Coast Guard and church leaders did not confirm the names of the other victims.
The vessel’s emergency beacon activated at 6:50 a.m. Friday, and a Coast Guard helicopter found debris within 40 minutes about 25 miles out, Captain Jamie Frederick said at a Saturday news conference. The search was called off the following day, renewing a familiar grief in a community where thousands have been lost to the water over four centuries.
MASSACHUSETTS: Tarr Statement on the Sinking of the Gloucester F/V Lily Jean
February 2, 2026 — Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester) released the following statement today regarding the sinking of the Gloucester F/V Lily Jean:
“Every day, men and women leave ports like Gloucester to harvest the bounty of the ocean for the people of our state and our nation, carrying with them the very real risk of not returning home. The sinking of the F/V Lily Jean makes the consequences of that risk painfully real.
Tonight, we are deeply appreciative of the ongoing and courageous efforts of the United States Coast Guard, whose personnel continue to search through the night, in dangerous conditions, for the crew of the F/V Lily Jean. Thank you also to the Gloucester Police Department, Gloucester’s Harbor Masters, elected officials and all of the those who are supporting the community during this difficult time. We are praying for those aboard the vessel and their families who are enduring the anguish of not knowing the fate of their loved ones.
Most of all, we stand together with those families, sustained by the enduring strength, unity, compassion, and faith that have long defined the Gloucester community since its earliest days.”
MASSACHUSETTS: State officials release updated regulations targeting fishing gear debris
January 30, 2026 — State officials have announced new regulations for the cleanup of fishing gear debris, to go into effect as of Friday, January 30, 2026.
The new regulations will serve to rewrite old laws affording gear with property rights – a relic of the days when biodegradable wooden lathe traps made up a significant portion of in-use fishing gear – and will permit local leaders, community organizations, and partner groups to cleanup derelict gear, 9% or more of which is lost each year.
The decision was informed by a report produced by the Derelict Gear Task Force, a collaboration of state, fishing industry, and conservation partners established by the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries in 2022.
Court says Vineyard Wind can resume ‘full activities’
January 29, 2026 — After two other projects secured relief in the courts, Vineyard Wind on Tuesday also won a decision allowing it to resume “full activities” at its offshore wind power project south of Nantucket.
U.S. District Court Judge Brian Murphy in Massachusetts stayed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s Dec. 22 project suspension order, which Vineyard Wind challenged on Jan. 15.
“As the legal process proceeds, Vineyard Wind will continue to work with the Administration to understand the matters raised in the Order,” Vineyard Wind said in a statement. “Vineyard Wind will focus on working in coordination with its contractors, the federal government, and other relevant stakeholders and authorities to safely restart activities, as it continues to deliver a critical source of new power to the New England region.”
MASSACHUSETTS: Vineyard Wind’s final turbine tower heads out of New Bedford port
January 29, 2026 — Less than 24 hours after Vineyard Wind secured a win in federal court that lifted the project suspension, it sailed its 62nd and final turbine tower out of the Port of New Bedford on a brutally cold Wednesday morning. The shipment comes more than two years after the first turbine went out, capping off a long installation process that hit several unexpected bumps and delays along the way.
All that remains now are 10 blade sets — or 30 blades — to install by the end of March, when the project will lose access to its specialized installation vessel.
Depending on the weather and sea conditions, a single blade can take a few hours to install. If the seas are too rough, work has to pause.
Chris Melendez, a millwright who started working at New Bedford’s Marine Commerce Terminal for Vineyard Wind in 2024, said workers are “excited that [it’s] finally leaving.”
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