Saturday began as a beautiful autumn day. It ended with a boating tragedy off Singing Beach that left a Beverly man dead, a Hamilton man hospitalized, and another Hamilton man missing.
The accident prompted an extensive, 20-hour search and rescue operation that drew vessels, aircraft, and personnel from across Cape Ann and the North Shore.
Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker’s office, which is leading the investigation, confirmed Monday that Carl Potter, 67, of Beverly was the man who died following the Oct. 3 accident. As of Thursday, James Wolcott, 37, of Hamilton remains missing.
A third man, Randy Ayer, 65, of Hamilton, survived and remains hospitalized at Massachusetts General Hospital, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The three men and a dog were aboard Sasparilla, the 30-ft recreational powerboat owned by Ayer and moored locally off of Tuck’s Point in Manchester. The vessel was reported in distress shortly before 4:30 p.m. The dog was recovered relatively quickly into the search on Saturday, alive, onboard the Sasparilla.
By Sunday evening, the U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search for Wolcott after a massive effort by federal, state and local agencies using specialized search equipment, yielded nothing.
Helicopter sweeps by Massachusetts state police of the area have continued this week, and the investigation into what happened, meanwhile, continues.
Evidence of a Significant Impact
New information provided to the Cricket this week by Coast Guard Sector Boston offers the clearest picture yet of what may have happened aboard Sasparilla, a two-hulled recreational powerboat equipped with four outboard engines and built on a catamaran-style design, with two separate hulls running beneath the vessel.
Coast Guard Sector Boston Public Affairs Ensign Duncan Lemarbre said the vessel was found partially submerged when it was recovered.
Massachusetts Environmental Police transported it to Crocker’s Boat Yard in Manchester, where it is being held in dry dock as the investigation continues.
Both the vessel’s hulls show signs of significant impact. The bottom of the left hull sustained extensive damage and deep scarring, while the right hull also shows damage, though to a lesser degree.
Initial evidence indicates Sasparilla may have struck a submerged object — likely a rock formation — and may have been traveling at a high rate of speed when the impact occurred.
Lemarbre said these preliminary indicators continue to be investigated but added that the apparent suddenness of the impact may also explain why no one aboard Sasparilla placed a distress call to the Coast Guard.
On Sunday, Manchester Harbormaster Bion Pike said that there is speculation that the accident occurred near Little Egg Rock, but emphasized the exact location has yet to be confirmed.
“No one knows for sure,” Pike said.
The conditions off the coastline between Gloucester and Manchester Harbor—which include Magnolia’s Norman’s Woe, Black and White beaches, and Singing Beach in Manchester—are notoriously rocky and contain many hidden hazards, depending on the tide.
High tide on Saturday afternoon peaked at 5:13 p.m.
The first report came through 911 rather than a marine radio distress call. The alert that came into Pike’s phone that day reported a boat that was in distress. The caller could see the dog on the boat.
Meanwhile, the Coast Guard’s Sector Boston command center received a report of a recreational vessel maneuvering in slow circles south of Graves Beach with no one visible aboard.
Who made the initial 911 call — someone watching from shore or from another boat — remains unclear.
Two Men Recovered
The Coast Guard also provided new details Monday about the rescue of Ayer and Potter. According to records, an “assistant” to the Manchester Harbormaster located Ayer in the water, according to records.
Ayer was stabilized and transported to Tuck’s Point, where emergency medical personnel and ambulances had assembled, ready and waiting. He was subsequently flown by medevac helicopter to Massachusetts General Hospital, where he remains hospitalized and under intensive care.
According to reports, it was the Beverly Harbormaster who located Potter in the water. He appeared to be unresponsive when rescuers reached him, according to the Coast Guard. Rescuers administered CPR using an automated chest-compression device as Potter was transported to Tuck’s Point and, then, taken by ambulance to Beverly Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
It is not yet clear whether any of the three men aboard Sasparilla were wearing life jackets, Lemarbre said.
Search for Wolcott Suspended
While rescuers were able to locate Ayer and Potter, an extensive search continued over 20 hours for Wolcott throughout Saturday and late into Sunday.
When the Coast Guard suspended the search, Lemarbre said, the multiagency effort had exhausted the search area using an array of surface, air and underwater search assets. Environmental Police employed specialized side-scan sonar equipment and a dive team as part of the effort.
Conditions on and in the water are important factors in Coast Guard search decisions, Lemarbre said. Water and weather conditions, currents and other environmental factors affect how a person can swim and function in the water, as well as how long someone could survive.
“The decision to suspend a search is never made lightly,” Capt. Jamie Frederick, commander of Coast Guard Sector Boston, said in announcing the suspension. “Our deepest condolences are with the family and loved ones affected by this tragedy. We are grateful to our local, state, and federal partners who supported the search efforts.”
The office, however, was clear: suspending a search does not mean authorities have determined what happened to Wolcott, and the broader investigation into the boating accident remains active.
An “All Out Effort”
Pike said the response to Saturday’s emergency brought together virtually every available marine rescue resource on Cape Ann and beyond. He said the response—especially from neighboring coastal communities with marine-related public safety resources—really demonstrated the spirit behind the phrase, “mutual aid.”
“This was an all-out effort with every available asset,” Pike said. “It showed a real commitment.”
The response included Coast Guard Station Gloucester and Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod; harbormasters from Manchester, Gloucester, Beverly, Salem and Boston; Massachusetts State Police; Gloucester Police; Beverly Fire Department and its dive team; and Massachusetts Environmental Police.
Manchester alone deployed three boats, according to Pike. Gloucester sent several boats, Salem sent two and Marblehead also sent a vessel. Beverly provided boats as well as a drone, and a drone operator.
The breadth of the response reflects the reality of marine emergencies, where minutes can matter and municipal boundaries quickly become irrelevant, he said.
Pike credited the person who first reported seeing something wrong Saturday afternoon with getting that response underway.
“I guess I would just say it’s because someone heard something, and then saw something, and they then said something that we were able to respond quickly,” Pike said. “Always be vigilant. The sooner people reach out to the folks who can help, the sooner we can get help to the people who need it.”
Not the First Time
Pike, who has served as Manchester’s harbormaster for 13 years, said Saturday’s emergency recalled other serious marine incidents during his tenure.
In May 2024, a boat was found against the rocky shoreline of Little Misery Island, between Manchester and Marblehead.
Its owner, 65-year-old Gloucester resident (and an experienced, lifelong boater) John Masiz, was missing from the vessel. A multiagency search involving the Coast Guard and area harbormasters recovered Masiz’s body later that night. Even after the official inquiry concluded, the full cause of that accident remains unclear.
And in the summer of 2018, a boat carrying a group of ten people struck Half Tide Rock near Sandy Cove, causing serious injuries. The accident was significant enough that then-Town Administrator Greg Federspiel cited it later that year while raising concerns about increasing boating traffic and safety along Manchester’s shoreline.
“These incidents happen,” Pike said.
His advice to anyone heading onto the water is straightforward.
“Take a safe boating class.”
The Manchester Cricket worked together with H/W News, another independent weekly community newspaper, to research this story.
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