But on July 18, by two p.m., all remaining hope began to fade as small pieces of foam insulation were found washed up over a mile along Philbin Beach. One of the captains on the search told the New York Times “the insulation was ‘consistent’ with insulation that would surround an airplane cockpit.” Massachusetts State Police captain Robert Bird, who had announced the finding, conceded to a reporter: “It likely would take an impact of great force to produce such debris.”
