The Lana Carol, a 71' long steel hulled scallop dredge, was heading home to Point Pleasant, New Jersey with a hold full of scallops when she encountered very heavy seas. This was not an unusual occurrence for a commercial fishing vessel operating in Atlantic waters. Her captain noticed that the hatch to the aft scallop hold had washed away and she was taking on water very fast. The Captain and crew could not overcome the great influx of water and the Lana Carol sunk in 85' of water about 10 miles southeast of Manasquan Inlet.

The Lana Carol was 71 feet long with a 21 feet beam and weighed 100 tons. She was built in 1973 and sank on October 31, 1976, an eventful Halloween for her crew, all of whom were rescued.