WINTER HARBOR, Maine (AP) — A lobsterman whose boat smashed into another boat — killing a fellow lobsterman — says neither captain realized the boats were bearing down on each other.

Phil Torrey says the fatal collision Wednesday afternoon had nothing to do with ongoing territorial disputes among some lobstermen off the Maine coast. He says he held no animosity toward 71-year-old Frank Jordan, who was killed. Jordan’s boat broke into pieces and sank near Schoodic Point.

Torrey told the Bangor Daily News that earlier reports that the boats had been near each other a few minutes before the accident were not true. Torrey says he saw Frank Jordan’s lobster boat in the distance before the collision but didn’t realize they were on a trajectory to collide.

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Information from: Bangor Daily News, http://www.bangornews.com

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