Coast Guard releases video of sunken boat

Inquirer staff writer Jacqueline L. Urgo reports:

The Coast Guard this morning released underwater video of the sunken scallop boat Lady Mary.

The release came as a Coast Guard investigatory panel is holding hearings in Cape May into the March 24 sinking, which claimed the lives of six crewmembers.

The video taken by a New Jersey State Police remotely operated vehicle shows the Lady Mary generally sitting upright on the bottom but reveals no evidence of the four crewmembers lost at sea.

At today's proceedings, Bill Semrau of the National Marine Fisheries satellite tracking division, said the Lady Mary's last signal was received at 5:10 a.m in an area about 60 miles off Cape May known as the Elephant's Trunk.

The fisheries agency tracks fishing vessels to ensure they are operating in authorized areas.

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