February 7, 1978
Can Do Feared Lost
The Coast Guard held out faint hope late this
morning for skipper Frank Quirk and a crew of at least three men aboard
the pilot boat Can Do. The 50-foot wooden pilot boat
disappeared last night somewhere off the Magnolia-Manchester shoreline while on its way to
rescue crewmen aboard a tanker grounded in Salem Harbor. The crew of the Can
Do were the following:
Capt. Frank Quirk, 49, of
Peabody, left a widow and one son
Donald Wilkinson, 35, of Rockport, left a widow and two children
Charles Bucko, a former Coast Guardsman
Norman David Curley, 35, of Magnolia
P. Kenneth Fuller, 34, of Magnolia, left a widow and five children
Hindered by 30 to 40-foot seas and 50-knot
winds, the Can Do made little progress. While calling for
help at 9:30 p.m. Quirk reported that all his electronic navigational equipment had
failed. Quirk estimated his position only as somewhere off Magnolia and later called
to say he had been injured when a wave surged over the bow and broke the pilot house
windows. Power was lost at the same time as waves engulfed the smokestack and doused
the engine.
Coast Guardsmen attempted to locate the vessel
from sea and local police and firefighters searched from shore without success. When
last in contact with the authorities at about midnight Quirk was using a hand-held
radio. Mattresses had been stuffed into the broken windows to keep out the seas.The
vessel was still taking on water and there was not accurate approximation of its
position. Attempts to sight the vessel form shore this morning were hindered by
driving snow that limited visibility to less than 100 yards.
Twice decorated by the city for his heroics at
sea, Quirk habitually involved himself in rescue operations regardless of sea conditions. |
