The bodies of two people have been discovered aboard a sunken fishing boat off the coast of Eastham in Cape Cod, the Coast Guard said Wednesday.
Captain of the F/V Seahorse, Shawn Arsenault, 64, and his girlfriend, Felicia Daley, 54, set sail out of Rock Harbor in Orleans on Sunday for a clamming trip, Arsenault’s brother, Paul, told NBC10 Boston.
The couple was fishing near the Target Ship Wreck off Eastham in Cape Cod Bay and a cellphone ping last located their boat about two miles off the coast of Chatham. Their boat had not returned to dock as expected by Tuesday morning, prompting a search by the Coast Guard.
Paul Arsenault said the couple had only been dating a few months and were “crazy about each other.”
Officials said Shawn Arsenault was seen throwing electronic items overboard just after leaving Orleans, including a GPS that was found on the beach.
Paul Arsenault told NBC10 Boston about his brother, "He was very excited about his new equipment, he installed it, left Sunday morning, and he said that he wasn't coming back till he had his 30-bag limit, and that's the last I heard of him.”
Aerial video showed the sunken boat near Saints Landing in Brewster. The Coast Guard said Arsenault had been remodeling the white boat that had a mermaid on the bow and “Seahorse” painted on the stern.
“Our hearts go out to the families of both persons onboard," Commander Cliff Graham, a search and rescue mission coordinator for the case, said in a statement. "The level of support from our maritime response partners and members from the fishing and local community was remarkable. It directly contributed to detection of the vessel and closure for the family."
The Coast Guard is asking anyone with information to contact the Sector Southeastern New England command center.
