A boat owner has until next week to salvage his craft off Gomez Rock near the Hernando Beach channel or be cited and fined $500 a day.
By DUANE BOURNE
Published March 18, 2004
HERNANDO BEACH - Sailing from Alabama to Jacksonville, there is no shortcut. Vessels navigate the Gulf Coast south to the tip of Florida then head north up the Atlantic.
That was Kelly Mitchell's route when his Chris-Craft boat, The Morning Star, sailed off course Monday night and hit a rock near the Hernando Beach channel, authorities said.
Mitchell, 66, who lives in Yulee, north of Jacksonville, called a towing company, who could not remove the 57-foot vessel but gave him a ride to shore, a Hernando County Sheriff's report said.
Now, the boat is wedged on what is known as Gomez Rock. Mitchell has to salvage the vessel by next week or face a citation and fines, county officials said.
Mitchell could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.
According to Hernando County Port Authority chairman Capt. John Saittis, the incident will be the first major test of the county's recently adopted ordinance regarding derelict boats. If Mitchell does not remove the vessel within 10 days of the incident, he will be fined $500 a day until it is, Saittis said Wednesday.
Saittis, who has lived in Hernando County for 24 years, said The Morning Star is one of the largest boats to sink off the Hernando coast in recent memory.
"Fifty-seven feet is a pretty good size vessel," said Saittis. "It certainly had no business being where it was. The Port Authority has signs saying that there is a big rock there."
While The Morning Star might be the largest sunken vessel, it is might not be the longest - by 3 feet. In 2001, a 60-foot fishing boat, the Sea Witch, sank in a Hernando Beach canal. The 1922 wooden fishing trawler was raised and sank again about 6 miles off the coast.
The Morning Star's voyage ended about 2 miles from shore, the report said. It was about 500 miles into the long trip along Florida's Gulf Coast.
Authorities found the vessel, with its hull damaged below the water line, resting firmly on top of a rock.
On Wednesday, Hernando County Waterways supervisor Roy Link said his staff would place a lighted buoy near the crippled vessel to warn others of the obstruction, especially at night.
The danger may not be limited to other boaters, however.
If the weather changes suddenly for the worst or if the coastal waters experience an unusually high tide, the boat could roll on its side, lessening the chance of it being salvaged, Saittis said.
"Evidently, if the calm weather holds up, there is a good chance that the boat could be salvaged," Saittis said. "My big concern is that if the owners don't respond quickly and we get bad weather, then the chances of getting it out are slim."
Should the vessel tip over, officials will have another situation on their hands. The Morning Star's load of diesel fuel could cause environmental damage. About 200 gallons leaked after the accident, Saittis said.
"My concern is that she carries a lot of fuel," said Saittis. "The payload is like a time bomb. That's what gets me worried."
Contacted by the Sheriff's Office on Tuesday, Mitchell told authorities he does not have the money to remove the boat, and he is trying to give it to a salvage company, the report said.
- Duane Bourne can be reached at 352 754-6114. Send e-mail to dbourne@sptimes.com
