BOSTON – The Coast Guard has confirmed that the owner of the Creole Belle, whose crew was airlifted by a Coast Guard helicopter Thursday evening, abandoned the fishing vessel Saturday after a salvage company deemed the scallop boat unsafe to tow.
A private salvor hired by Creole Belle’s owner arrived on scene at 8:00 a.m. Saturday morning and boarded the vessel to assess the situation for towing. Upon going aboard, the salvor discovered the fishing vessel’s engine room was half-full of water, and the fish hold had several feet of water in it. The salvor determined f/v Creole Belle was unsafe to work aboard and too dangerous to tow. After two days of observing and assessing the condition of the vessel, the Coast Guard reached the same conclusion. By afternoon, the owner stated he had no choice but to abandon the Creole Belle and presented the Coast Guard with a letter to this effect.
The Coast Guard Cutter Campbell took proactive steps to eliminate the significant hazard to navigation posed by this unlit vessel on the high seas. The Creole Belle sank approximately 80 miles southeast of Nantucket in 250-330 feet of water. Creole Belle was reported to have 1,000 gallons of fuel oil on board. The minor potential environmental impact posed by the vessel’s fuel was weighed against the potential for a life-threatening collision at sea with this substantial vessel, unlit, partially submerged, abandoned, and in close proximity to major shipping lanes.
