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<< Previous   of   Next >> (click to enlarge)   ADVERTISEMENT   Related Stories • Second excavator dragged from bog 7/7/07   CONTACT THE HERALD Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com   Published: Saturday, May 5, 2007 Man on hook for sinking excavator Rented rig is stuck in muck of Ebey Island By David Chircop / Herald Writer It's one of the most visible foul-ups in Snohomish County. That is, except for the fact that it's sinking a couple of inches every day. Jim Clemetson, 48, of Everett, was attempting to cut a driveway last month to his mother's property on Ebey Island, just north of the U.S. 2 trestle. That plan was bogged down when a 20-metric ton excavator that he rented got stuck in the mud. "It's quite a freaking mess," Clemetson said. "I've had nothing but troubles lately." He says he paid a contractor to pull the excavator out of the mud, but, after a week of trying, the yellow 2006 John Deere 200 fell on its side and filled with sludge. A man working with the contractor inside the excavator narrowly escaped injury, he said. Clemetson said he fears the equipment rental company will hold him responsible for the $140,000 to $200,000 machine. The state Department of Ecology is also demanding something be done. Department of Ecology spokesman Larry Altose said the fuel was drained from the excavator before it tipped, and it does not appear as though hydraulic fluid, oil or contaminants from the machine are leaking into the water. Clemetson said he wanted to use the property to store native trees that he digs up and sells to landscapers and nurseries. He said he decided to cut the driveway only after learning that he had no access to his family's 4.5-acre parcel, which was recently purchased for $65,000. Ellen Steck, vice president of marketing for RSC Equipment Rental in Scottsdale, Ariz., said the company is still figuring out how it will reclaim the equipment. The Clemetsons' land is flanked by protected wetlands and private land, whose owner is demanding money and legal protection for Clemetson to enter. "All of us at RSC take this situation very seriously and we will provide any needed information to authorities," she said, reading from a prepared statement. The sight is prompting truckers to crook their necks as they drive along the elevated highway east of Everett. "It seems to be sinking a few inches every day," said Rudy Horak, who drives a cement truck for Rinker Materials across the span about five times a week. Horak was so curious that after work, he hiked down for a closer look at the submerged excavator. He said he ran into the brother of another trucker who was doing the same thing. Bruce King, Clemetson's neighbor, who allowed him to drive the excavator across his land, said he gets about two visitors a day asking about the equipment. He said on Thursday a group of about 30 people hiked through the foul-smelling muck and downed brush to look. Government officials, tow companies, even people from competing rental companies have stopped by. King, who runs a small poultry and bee farm off 55th Avenue SE, said he feels sympathy for Clemetson, and hopes insurance will cover any remaining expenses. He said he extended an offer to RSC Equipment Rental to reach the landlocked site: pay him $4,000 and let Clemetson off the hook, or pay him $20,000 and continue to pursue him. King said Clemetson was wronged when he was sold inaccessible land, and wronged again when he paid a contractor for a job that wasn't finished. Now he could be on the hook with a big expense. "This would be the third time he's been screwed," he said. Reporter David Chircop: 425-339-3429 or dchircop@heraldnet.com.

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