Derelict Sinks In St. Augustine

[rleslie]

This derelict boat was nothing but rust before she went down this week. This will place more pressure on the 50 or more non-seaworthy boats anchored here. There was already talk of the city installing a mooring field and requiring insurance.

[ssullivan]

Jeez... and St Augustine was one of the last holdouts in FL for a great place to anchor. We have *got* to ban together to remove these vessels somehow. I'd chip in a couple hundred bucks a year to support the removal of these vessels so we could keep good anchorages. Ugh... I'm just going to buy SeaLand. I've had it with the complexities of society, as can be seen by all my ranting in other posts.

[rleslie]

The new Florida law is supposed to make it easier for municipalities to remove derelict boats. It will be interesting to see what happens over the next few years. The bottom line is, these boats contribute to the negative attitude towards cruisers.

"Be a moving target"
Roger

[ssullivan]

Right, but if the municipality has to remove them, they will find a way to "cut that cost" (ie: dropping in municpal moorings, prohibiting anchoring, etc...)

I think we as boaters might want to be responsible for this to keep the municipalities out. Just another idea for the achorage threads. Maybe the local yacht clubs and marinas could charge a "derelict boat" annual fee, keep an endowment and use that to pull derelict vessels (sunken or just sitting there abandoned) out of the harbors. Seems like it would work on a local level.

[phorvati]

We just spent entire december anchored right behind that red daymark. Which boat was the one that sank? Was it the big metal rusty ketch? Its hard to see from the pic.
St. Augustine was nice but there was quite a few boats barely floating and neglected.
Petar

[rleslie]

Originally Posted by phorvati

We just spent entire december anchored right behind that red daymark. Which boat was the one that sank? Was it the big metal rusty ketch? Its hard to see from the pic.
St. Augustine was nice but there was quite a few boats barely floating and neglected.
Petar

No. It was not a sail boat. A very old trawler.

Another one broke loose today in the south anchorage and is now laying against the Santa Maria boardwalk. Two in the last five days!!!This makes all legitimate sailors/cruisers look bad!!!

[Zeus]

Why don't the marinas/city create something similar with the junk boats that they do with junk cars? In the little rat hole that my in-laws live in, if there is a car with:
-expired registration
-flat tires
-obviously hasn't been driven or in operable
-etc....
then they mail the last registered owner a letter. They have 30 days to correct the issues with the car. The owners can repair the car, place the car in the garage, or dispose of it. This does have some negatives. My mother-in-law had an accident and had the car towed to her house. While waiting on the insurance company the local "Old Bittey" called to cops. Less than two weeks after the accident she received a letter about the car. After a brief explanation she was given a little slack. But overall the new ordinance has been great. You can actually drive down the streets that were previously not passable and it has generated a little income for the city. With a similar law/ordinance governing boats at the marina I think that we could all but eliminate what has been demonstrated above. If there is obviously a derelict boat that has not moved in over a year getting lower in the water we all know what is going to eventually happen. I think it would be far cheaper to haul the boat out placing it on the hard and then place a lien against it. If the owner does not pay the haul out fee and regain possession of the boat then it gets auctioned. I know this is another law that will inevitably piss people off. But are the new laws they are trying/have in-acted better, I think not.
Zeus.

[cat man do]

We have a Tosser in the Rochampton Central Queensland area doing this.

Second jail sentence imposed for environmental offences

On 9 March 2005, the Bundaberg Magistrates Court sentenced a scrap metal dealer to six months imprisonment after a 450 tonne former gravel barge owned by him ran aground near Deepwater National Park.

The defendant ignored directions from Maritime Safety Queensland (MSQ) to remove approximately 7000 litres of potential pollutants from the barge, and a further order to remove the barge itself. The MSQ eventually removed the material and barge, at a cost of $120,000.

The barge, which was unseaworthy, unregistered, uninsured and lacking proper safety equipment, sank shortly afterwards in deeper water.
The defendant pleaded guilty to counts of failing to comply with an authorised officer’s directions and operating an unregistered ship. He pleaded not guilty to counts of operating an unsafe ship, two counts of operating a ship that was not equipped with the required safety equipment, and operating a ship without the appropriate licence. He was found guilty of all six charges.

The defendant had previously served a nine month jail sentence for failing to remove approximately 1,000 drums of liquid wastes, including paints and solvents, from an illegal waste business at a Gracemere property.

In June 2003, the defendant was fined $25,000 by the Rockhampton Magistrates Court after 2200 litres of diesel was discharged into the Fitzroy River from a derelict vessel owned by him.


here is a pic of his current $hitter dumped in the river about 100 meter's from where i'll eventually park my cat when we base ourselves there.

This is a river that still has Saltwater Croc's, Barramundi and Mudcrab's regulaly caught and spotted in the Town Reach.

Not Happy

Dave

[Jentine]

A couple of observations: There are sufficient statutes on the books for the authorities in Florida to identify and remove derelict vessels. I googled Florida statutes and identified eight pertinent statutes they could apply. Several years ago, immediately following a hurricane, there were many sunken boats in Boot Key Harbor that weren't removed. The county didn't have the money was the excuse. Truthfully, the county had the money but spent it elsewhere. They could have included that part of the clean-up in the hurricane budget.
Secondly, the marina where I keep my boat in Connecticut disposes of boats by hiring a dumpster slightly longer than the boat, puts the entire boat into the dumpster and crushes it in place with a back hoe. They ofter get two or more boats in a single container. Very cost effective.
There are many questions concerning the effectiveness of town management in coastal Florida towns. They use the derelict problem to draft other statutes to further inhibit the law abiding citizens that don't vote in their jurisdiction.
maybe someday.

[ssullivan]

Jentine:

Wow! So they just crush up the old boats? Can you PM me when they have one they want to get rid of? I'll take if off their hands for free. No dumpster expense, no expense of using the lift, etc....

[Vasco]

Friend of mine dropped his Hughes 35 off an elevated freeway while he was towing it to be stored. We managed to drag it back to our club where it sat for quite a while. He had to pay big bucks to get it removed because the fiberglass was classified as hazardous material. It's not that easy to get rid of old boats, especially if they're not seaworthy.

[FrankZ]

My boatyard owner uses a chainsaw and dumpster to get rid of boats. He has a Coronado 25 that he is likely to end up owning due to nonpayment of fees. I have offered to help him with that one as I get the parts I want, and I will get a chance to dig deep in the innards and see how things are put together, what gaps there are etc without actually cutting up my own boat first.

[ssullivan]

Wow...very interesting. Again... if anyone knows of boats in the northeast USA that are getting tossed out, I wouldn't mind a PM.

Hazmat, whatever... I'll take it if it floats.

[rleslie]

Sean

Go around to the local yards and ask if they have any that have been abandoned. They may be more willing to proceed with the necessary action to take "legal" possession of the boat if they know they have some one to take it and dispose/move the boat off of their yard.

Roger

[scallywag]

The boat that sank in St. Augustine had an occupant aboard, according to the newspaper. He stated he was quoated as preparing to go out to sea. He stated he hit something. (Maybe an anchor line. The area was filled with boats.) I saw the vessel afloat. It had rust marks going down the sides. To take the other side, it takes months for salvage and rance companies to respond.