When Marblehead lobsterman Paul Burns got a call on July 7 that his lobster boat was sinking at its mooring off The Barnacle Restaurant, he rushed to the harbor. But by the time he arrived, only the tip of the bow remained above the water.
Heavy rain and wind apparently caused the bilge pump aboard Gail Force to fail, allowing the 19-foot yellow Seaway lobster boat to fill with water. Heavy swells eventually pulled the vessel under.
For Burns, losing the boat meant far more than losing a vessel. It meant losing the foundation of the lobstering business he had just started building…