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They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters:
These see the works of the Lord and his wonders in the deep.

From the 107th psalm




It's been the hub of the fishing industry for nearly four hundred years
And has witnessed heartbreaking tragedies that have ended in tears
The city of Gloucester in Massachusetts on Americas east coast
Is home to the Atlantic's brave fishermen that's no idle boast.

In nineteen ninety one on the twentieth day of September
A day families of a trawler crew will always remember
The captain and crew of the fishing boat the Andrea Gail
For the Grand Banks of Newfoundland on that day had set sail.

They arrived at the Grand Banks but their catch was quite low
So the boats captain decided to the Flemish Cap they'd go
An area that they hoped would reap them great rewards
The plan was to fill the holds quickly, then set course homewards.

The ice machine had broken down so now they had to abort
Their catch would have been spoilt, so they headed back to port
Meanwhile some high and low pressure was building up at sea
But something else was building up that they didn't foresee.

Another fishing boat made contact and tried to give warning
But contact was lost as a giant storm was now forming
Winds built up and got stronger then the storm unleashed hell
The roar of those strong winds was sounding the death knell.

Conditions slowed the boat down it couldn't go any faster
They were oblivious to the fact that they were heading for disaster
An experienced crew in bad weather; but this wasn't the norm
Hurricane Grace mixed with two fronts that created the storm.

There was seventy mile an hour winds and hundred foot waves
That sent the Andrea Gail crew to their watery graves
The boats owner was concerned that she was long overdue
He contacted the U.S. Coastguard out of concern for her crew.

On Sable Island the emergency beacon was found washed ashore
Along with some other debris but boat and crew were no more
The city of Gloucester had suffered yet another tragedy
With the loss of the boats crew who'd perished out at sea.

No one knows what really happened and many theories abound
And theories they remain because the boat was never found
The most popular were the holds were overladen with their catch
And sea water fouled the engines getting in through the hatch.

Fishing has been an occupation since sixteen twenty three
When Cape Ann in Massachusetts Bay became a  colony
And since then ten thousand have been lost out at sea
That's why the city of Gloucester is no stranger to tragedy.




Written 3rd October 2020.

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