The owner of the powerboat that broke apart on the rocky shore of Peaks Island on Tuesday plans to clean up the debris this weekend, according to the city of Portland.
A group of island residents since Wednesday has been cleaning up the shore and moving pieces of the wreck above the high-tide mark. The area is strewn with pieces of fiberglass and electronics, according to resident Rory Sellers, who has been involved in cleanup.
“There are tiny pieces of fiberglass everywhere,” he said. “I think there are a billion of these pieces.”
The 44-foot fiberglass boat, Argo, is owned by Jamie Feeney of Gray and was built in 1985. The boat sank in February and had been recently floated to the surface and moored by Feeney, the Coast Guard said. The boat later broke from its mooring and ran aground. The boat was subsequently destroyed as waves repeatedly slammed it against the rocks.
All hazardous materials had been removed from the boat before it ran aground, said Lt. David Bourbeau of the U.S. Coast Guard, which oversees salvage operations to ensure safety and cleanup protocols are properly followed.
Boat owners are responsible for salvaging their boats if they run aground, he said, and the Coast Guard is no longer overseeing the cleanup
“At this point, it’s trash on the beach,” he said of the wreck. “The Coast Guard doesn’t have a role in cleanup efforts in that stuff. The owner is 100 percent responsible.”
Feeney could not be reached for comment.
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