Sea Ray Sport Cruiser Ends Aground in St. Andrews Jetties

A ten meter Sea Ray sport cruiser collided and ended aground on the Shell island side of St. Andrews Jetty, to the South of Panama City on the night of Thursday 28th March.  According to unconfirmed reports the Sea Ray lost power on her way out, and ended aground on the jetty, piercing the hull and partially sinking.  Two boat salvage attempts for the Sea Ray sport cruiser were made by SeaTow the following day and Sunday, with pumps emptying water and a tow with no success.  Ultimately and unfortunately the Sea Ray sport cruiser was still in the spot one week after the accident and then ended sank and wrecked.

The Sea Ray in this grounding is a 350 Sundancer as produced from 2010 to 12. Available with both stern drive or V-drive line shaft engines, the 350 Sundancer was a good seller in a difficult economy.  An evolution of the 330 Sundancer which launched in 2008 and recognizable by the different port holes, the 350 evolved again in 2012 into the 355, with a new stern design and larger hull glazing serving the lower cabin deck.

Classic Boat Crashes Into Rockingham Jetty

A classic eleven meter flybridge cruiser crashed, and then partly sank into Rockingham Yacht Club Jetty, in Rockingham, Western Australia on the late night of 31 January.  The cause of the accident are not reported but chats on social media are saying the captain collided with the jetty for a couple times, before eventually hitting bottom, and then partly sinking grounding the cruiser in the spot.  The classic flybridge cruiser was still in the same spot, partly sank and tied up to Rockingham Jetty as at ninth February.

The classic boat in this sinking looks to be a Mariner 38 Mk.I as build in the seventies.  Mariner Boats in Australia was founded by Bill Barry-Cotter in 1969 who he will sell in 1978, to then found Riviera in 1980 and then sell again in 2002, to then establish his third boat building brand Maritimo, which today he manages with his sons.

Record Snowfall in Juneau Alaska Sinks Eight Boats

Record snowfall in between thirteen to 25 January in Juneau, Alaska has sunk about eight boats, and damage partly sank some more.  The first heavy snow storm arrived on the thirteen January and that did over half a meter of snowfall in one night.  Since then and for twelve days the storms did not stop, with January 2024 reaching over a meter and half of snow fall, sixteen centimetres less to the record set in January 2009, when 191 centimetres of snowfall was recorded for a whole month.  Of the eight boats that sunk two are pleasure boats, with the rest being mostly commercial fisher-craft.  Some pleasure boats suffered a partial sinking, also because most of these are kept in covered slips as the above picture shows. 

Juneau is located to the South-East of Alaska, in the Gulf of Alaska, bordering to the North with the Bering Sea and to the Pacific Ocean in the South.  Juneau has a population of just over thirty thousand with temperatures that reach twenty degrees Celsius plus in Summer and going to below zero in the Winter months.

B is for Build Classic Riva Sinks

B is for Build vlog classic twelve meter Riva titled m/y B is for Boat sank on Thursday eighteen January in Riverplace Marina, Portland, Vancouver.  The cause of the sinking as reported on B is for Build YouTube vlog was a raw water inlet pipe in the engine room which froze due to cold weather, and a water filter cannister which cracked open with the ice.  B is for Build made two videos about the sinking, the  first going into the news about the sinking, and the second showing the re-float of the classic Riva.  B is for Boat was floated back in it's berth, with the plan being to take her to a boat yard, and Chris promising a rebuild of his classic Riva sport cruiser. 

B is for Boat is a 1990 Riva 43 Tropicana.  Designed by Giorgio Barilani, the Riva 43 Tropicana was produced from 1989 to 97 in 53 units, a sport cruiser design hull based on the 42 Malibu and 42 Caribe, with all these coming from a length extended 38 Bravo hull released in 1979.  B is for Boat was repowered in Spring 2021 with twin petrol gas LSX 750hp from previous Cummins 420hp diesels.

Classic Trojan Sinks in Pittsburgh

A classic nine meter Trojan partly sank on the morning of second January at North Shore, Pittsburgh, Pensylvania.  The Trojan cruiser partly sank only because it rested on the river bed which is just over a meter deep.  Following the sinking Pittsburgh authorities protected the sunk cruiser with boons to avoid pollution from spreading.  The Trojan cruiser was reported to arrive and moor in that particular spot only some days before it eventually sank.  This particular Trojan classic was reported sold in September 2023.  

The Trojan in this sinking is an F-30 Sea Raider the full fiberglass version which arrived after 1974, as initially this series was build with a fiberglass hull and wooden super structure, launching in 1970.  The flybridge in the 30 Sea Raider was an option, to the hard-top express version.

South West Florida Hit by Strong Low Pressure

A strong low pressure hit the South West Florida on Sunday seventeen December, with various streets being flooded in the area, a storm surge of one meter, over five centimetres of rain water, and winds up to Force seven Beaufort of intensity.  Punta Gorda which has still not recovered from Hurricane Ian from September 2022, was one of the most hit areas, along with Forty Myers, and Palm Beach.  

Many weather forecast models are saying this and previous recent storms, along with a particularly unusually strong Pacific Hurricane Season are the affect of El Nino which finally has arrived.  The 2024 El Nino is forecasted to be a strong one, because of record heat in recent Summers, and also because it delayed by a year. 

A classic Hatteras 53 Motor Yacht suffered the affect of the storm surge, with crew trying to resolve this.

This is a Chaparral 28/29 Signature which ended beached after breaking free from its mooring.  

A first version Ocean Yachts 38 Super Sport also suffered the affect of the storm, and partly sank.

Tropical Storm-Force Winds Hits South Florida

Tropical storm-force winds hit South Florida and the Treasure Island on Thursday, sixteen November.  The winds started gusting at over fifty knots at around 04:00 hours of the morning with the storm calming down jest before 18:00 local time.  The storm caused a lot of damage in the area, toppled a lot of trees, destroyed tents, broke loose a few boats, and three hundred power cuts happening during the day.  In Jensen beach a catamaran ended slamming in a dock, while a ketch finished beached and aground and partly toppled into a seawall after it broke loose.  The picture above shows also a sport-boat-cruiser of about eleven meters in length which partly sank, and was hanging with the dock near Gateway Boulevard in Boynton beach.

The sport-power-boat-cruiser in the above sinking is a Formula 419 SR-1.  Designed by  Formula designer John Adams, the 419 SR-1 was introduced in 1991 as a flagship of the range, with triple engines for speeds up to seventy knots, and the trademark 24 degrees deadrise aft.  In 1997 the 419 evolved into the FasTech updated with a three-step hull, and produced till 2001.  Formula never really replaced the 419, with the 382 FasTech taking it's place as flagship, 

Hurricane Otis Goes Apocalyptic in Acapulco

Hurricane Otis made an apocalyptic arrival in Acapulco on Wednesday 25 October, devastating the waterfront of the Acapulco Yacht Club in the North-West of the bay.  Otis was a compact and so far the most powerful Tropical storm category five hurricane of the 2023 Pacific Season reaching speeds up to 143 knots on the morning of October 25. Forming on the 22nd November, and reaching its peak on the 04:00 hours of October 25, Otis hit and made landfall in Isla de la Roqueta, to the South of Acapulco, killing 49 people, with 57 still missing, and is estimated to have made seventeen billion US dollars in damages.     

Scene from the North part of the of Acapulco Yacht Club, you can see an Azimut 54, and a Sunseeker Predator 63 Open to the left corner, along with a few Sea Rays.

Here is the South side is a Ferretti 800, followed by a Sunseeker Predator 57, a mid nineties Horizon Elegance 82, and an Azimut 100 Jumbo.

A before and after Hurricane Otis view of Acapulco Bay.  Possibly one of the biggest single areas destructions, and devastations ever seen.

Sea Ray Ends Beached in Coney Island

A ten meter Sea Ray sports cruiser titled Broken Arrow with one person onboard ended beached by the West 37th Street Jetty, Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York just before 19:00 hours of Friday twentieth October.  The Sea Ray sport cruiser is reported to have left a marina on Rockaway in rough seas and had some problems with a risk of sinking, with the skipper onboard beaching it to avoid her going down.  The sport cruiser was reported being secured on the same night by the owner.  The day after the ownership was reported trying to unbeach the boat, with no success. 

We have reports that until 1 November Broken Arrow was still beached in the same spot.

Broken Arrow is a Sea Ray 340 Express Cruiser.  Produced from 1984 to 89 the 340 EC offers an open plan accommodation sleeping two plus two, and line shafts propulsion with tunnels.  Similar to the Sundancer in looks, the Sea Ray Express Cruiser offered line shafts propulsion, and a smaller interior alternative version.  The 340 EC had a 340 Sport Fisherman flybridge variant produced till 1987, and was replaced by the 310/330 Express Cruiser in 1990.

Storm Babet

Storm Babet has made havoc in Britain, northern Germany and southern Scandinavia, with powerful winds, heavy rain and storm surges that caused floods, power outages, evacuations and disrupted flights, railway service and ferry lines.  Storm Babet made landfall on Thursday nineteen October, first arriving in the northern part of the United Kingdom, and continued making havoc in North Germany and Southern Scandinavia up till Saturday 21st October.  Gale-force winds whipped up storm surges on the southern shores of the Baltic Sea, breaking through flood defences in coastal areas in Denmark and northern Germany. In Flensburg, a German city just south of the border with Denmark, water levels rose more than two meters to the highest level recorded in a century.  

Forming on the fifteen October Storm Babet also called Storm Viktor in Germany, is an extratropical cyclone which affected Northern and Western Europe, reaching speeds up to one hundred knots, and has caused nine fatalities.  

So far we know that Storm Babet caused damage in the following German yacht marinas; Olympic port of Schilksee in Kiel, Damp, north of Eckernförde, and Wassersleben Marina in Harrislee near Flansbee causing damage to over 200 boats.  The storm in these harbours was caused on Friday twentieth October.

Sea Ray Sport Cruiser Saved from Sinking in Mallets Bay

A thirteen meter Sea Ray sport cruiser with one person onboard was in danger of sinking after hitting a solid object at about 17:00 hours of Monday second October to the South West of Valcour Island, Mallets Bay, Lake Champlain, Burlington, Vermont.  Receiving a call the Cholchester Fire department rescued to owner-boater with its rescue boat, the coast guard followed later, and started the operation to save the Sea Ray sport cruiser, which was sinking in over a meter of water and its bow already buried in the sea bed.  The coast guard initiated the saving with a gas-powered pump and later received the assistance from Red Cap Marine and Salvage who added another pump, floated and patched the Sea Ray and then towed her to Champlain Marina area to dry dock her.  No one was injured in the collision, with the solid object opening a gap of about two feet in the sport cruiser's hull bottom to port side.

The Sea Ray in this near sinking is a 1993 to 95 440 Sundancer.  The Sea Ray 440 Sundancer offered a lower deck sleeping four plus two, and was powered by twin 300 to 425hp Cat engines on line shafts for speeds up to thirty knots with the large engine option.  Introduced as 420 Sundancer in 1990, she was updated as 440 with port holes replacing the window and propeller tunnels added in the hull.  The 440 Sundancer was replaced in 1995 with the Sea Ray 450 Sundancer.

Donzi Powerboat Wake Flies and Disintegrates On Landing

A seven meter Baja power boat with two persons onboard disintegrate landed and sank after hitting a big wake near Schaefer's Canal House, about one nautical mile off Chesapeake Bridge, Virginia just before 12:00 hours of Sunday first October.  Thrown into the water by the impact the two persons onboard were rescued by a nearby Samaritan boater, then taken to hospital for observation and released some hours later with non life-threating injuries.  After the sinking the Coast Guard issued a danger to navigation warning and closed the canal, as the powerboat was resting bow upwards in about four meters of water.  On the 03:00 hours of Tuesday morning TowBoatUS, the US Army Corps of Engineers, and Northstar Marine Salvage removed the powerboat wreckage in two pieces. 

The Baja powerboat in this collision is the 26 Outlaw model.  Offering a two berth accommodation as most powerboats in this size the 26 Outlaw is powered by a single 350 up to 600hp stern drive petrol gas engine for speeds up to 57 knots.  The 26 Outlaw was released in 2007 and evolved into the 27 Outlaw in 2017, recognizable by the larger side-engine air intakes.

Sea Ray Boat Capsize Sinks in Panama City

A nine meter Sea Ray flybridge cruiser with one person onboard started to take on water and later capsized and sank near Hathaway Bridge, Panama City on the afternoon of Sunday 24 September.  Panama City coast guard intervened just in time, with the boat capsizing seconds in the saving of the one person onboard the Sea Ray cruiser.  Ending with the bow tip out of the water the Sea Ray cruiser was for a night a navigational hazard, resting in shoal water with an oil boom around her on the near abouts to Panama City Marina.  A salvage operation was organized the day after by SeaTow, with the boat retrieved and taken to a boat yard.    

The Sea Ray in this sinking is a 310 Sport Bridge, produced from 1992 to 93 as a mid-core sport fishing cruiser on the 310 Amberjack platform, with the addition of an open flybridge.  The 310 Sport Bridge has an interior sleeping two down below, and is powered by 300hp in both petrol or diesel with line shaft in semi-tunnels propulsion for speeds up to thirty knots.

Hurricane Idalia

Hurricane Idalia started to form on the 26th August from a low pressure in Central America and the Eastern Pacific Ocean.  Idalia touched briefly category four on thirtieth August, when it reached the Big Bend region of Florida, and later become a category three as it crossed to South East Georgia.  Hurricane Idalia later pushed into the Carolinas as it became a Tropical Storm.  Idalia reached 110 knots of wind speed as it made landfall in Florida although it biggest damage came from the storm surge, with water level rising by over two meters.  Since August 31 Idalia has dissipated in the Atlantic, near the Bermuda's.   Idalia was the third hurricane, second major one, and the tenth storm of 2023.

Idalia caused damage to tens of boats and yachts mostly from the storm surge.  Videos on social media showed drifting boats in the Florida canals, while some home owners ended with boats in the court yard in the aftermath of Idalia's storm surge.

Boat Sinks Near Stintino

A traditional motor cruiser of about eight meters in length with one passenger onboard sank near Punta Negra, to the North of Stintino, North West of Sardinia on 05:00 hours of eighteen August.  The cases of the sinking are not reported, though some unconfirmed reports are saying the traditional cruiser hit the reef of Punta Negra and probably to try and save the boat decided to beach it.  The one crew was helped by nearby boaters, and then assisted by the Guardia Costiera and Fire Fighters of the area. The man was later transported by the coast guard to Stintino.

The boat in this sinking is a Sagene 28 a pilot boat inspired motor cruiser with an accommodation for two on the lower deck, and a living with dinette and galley.  The Sagene 28 was a natural evolution of the Bargo 4, and was produced from the mid eighties till the nineties.

Bayliner Boat Hits Pier Then Sinks in Hamilton Harbour

An eleven meter Bayliner flybridge cruiser with one person onboard was the attention of drama after it hit a pier, and later on sank in Hamilton Harbor just after 20:00 hours of Wednesday sixteen August.  The Bayliner cruiser was apparently returning to the harbor when it hit the pier and started sinking.  Hamilton Police rushed to the scene and arrested the only man onboard the boat, a 28 year old from Waterloo which was accused of operating the boat in an impaired condition.

The Bayliner in this collision is a 3870 Motor Yacht produced from 1983 to 89, and 90 to 94 in the 3888 radar arch version.  Featuring a semi planning flat-V hull shape with modest power the 3870 Motor Yacht offered a two cabins two head accommodation layout.  Bayliner sold over a thousand 3870/ 3888 Motor Yacht, with the model replaced by the 3988 Motor Yacht in 1995.

Boat Aground in Policastro

A ten meter sport cruiser with five persons onboard ended on top of a reef near Policastro Bussentino, to the South of Salerno on the late afternoon of sixteen August.  The sport cruiser and the Neapolitan family was immediately assisted by Policastro Guardia Costiera, and the Sapri military squad.  A bit more complicated the safety of the sport cruiser which had to be removed with caution due to a breach in its hull bottom.  After some temporary repairs to the hull breach the ten meter sport cruiser was later towed to Policastro Busentino marina boat yard for repairs.

This grounded sport cruiser is a Galgiotta Camaro Even mt. 10,60 produced from 1987 to the end nineties.  The Camaro Even followed the styling of the larger Camaro Tris, and was powered by twin Volvo 200hp diesel engines on sterndrives. Replacing the CM Special , the Camaro Even was replaced by the more sportfish inspired Gagliardo 37 in year 2000.  Made in Naples, Italy Gagliotta is known for its fast deep-Vee seaworthy hulls, that received high praises even from the legendary Don Aronow.

Nordhavn Hits Reef Capsizes and Sinks

A fourteen meter Nordhavn explorer cruiser hit a reef capsized and then sank in 45NW Vancouver, Canada on the morning of nine August.  It was a sad turn of events and a bit unfortunate for the explorer cruiser, which after hitting its bottom, rolled to its starboard side, capsized and then sank.  The explorer cruiser was a day later recovered by a barge ship and taken to Campbell River to one of the yards in the area for a big repair.  

The Nordhavn in this sinking is a 47 model, produced from 2002 to 2009 in 59 units.  The Nordhavn 47 offered a two double cabins interior and is powered by a single Lugger 165hp engine for speeds up to nine knots, and a range up to three thousand nautical miles on an efficient seven knots cruise.  Replacing Nordhavn's first 46 model released in 1989, the N47 evolved into the 52 via length extension in 2009.

Motor Cruiser Saved from Sinking Near Varazze

An eight meter Starfisher motor cruiser with three persons onboard was sinking while cruising in nearby to Varazze on the early morning of Sunday thirtieth July.  The flybridge cruiser was taking water while risking to sink with the Italian coast guard towing and beaching the boat in the Nautilus bathing area further to the east of Varazze.  An ambulance was also called but the three occupants where all in a healthy condition.

The flybridge cruiser in this near sinking is a Starfisher 27HT fully enclosed express cruiser.  Released in 2008 the Starfisher 27HT offers a two plus two cabin layout and is powered by twin 260hp and 315hp diesel engines in line shaft propulsion.  The Starfisher 27HT is still produced today.

Cranchi Cruiser Partly Sinks Near Civitavecchia

A ten meter Cranchi sport cruiser with three French persons ended aground while having its hull breached during navigation near to Civitavecchia in the late afternoon of Friday 28 July.  The Cranchi sport cruiser was reported coming from Argentario, when apparently it had problems to one engine which stopped working, and then finishing beached and taking water in La Marina area to the South of Civitavecchia large commercial harbour.  The French boaters were later assisted at around midnight by the Civitavecchia fire fighting squad.

The Cranchi in this sinking is the Cruiser 32 model. Released in 1990 the Cranchi Cruiser 32 was produced till 1996 to a design of Andreani.  The Cranchi Cruiser 32 offered a two cabins interior and powered by twin 200hp Volvo diesel with stern drives reached speeds to about 32 knots. The Cruiser 32 was replaced by the successful Zaffiro 34 in 1997.