Update, 9:25 a.m. Thursday: The abandoned sailboat was taken to the Port of Everett on Thursday morning, Mukilteo Mayor Jennifer Gregerson said.
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MUKILTEO — The abandoned 25-foot sailboat at Lighthouse Park has gotten an extended staycation.
The boat was scheduled to be towed to the Port of Everett early Wednesday morning. Plans abruptly changed when a recovery team found an eight-inch crack in the hull.
“Once they got it into the water, it flooded right away,” said Mukilteo Mayor Jennifer Gregerson. “It’s sitting next to the boat launch right now, under water.”
The revised plan calls for hauling the boat out of the water Thursday morning. Barring any other problems, the boat will be refloated starting at 4 a.m. If needed, lift bags will be attached below the boat to act like balloons and keep it afloat, she said.
The boat will be towed south to the Port of Edmonds because it can be more quickly stored in dry dock there, she said.
The change in plans will add to the cost of moving the boat, but Gregerson said she doesn’t yet know by how much. The cost of moving the boat initially was estimated at $5,240, plus city staff time.
The Department of Natural Resources is expected to pay 90 percent of the costs of the boat’s removal. The state agency has disposed of more than 500 abandoned boats since 2006 through its Derelict Vessel Removal Program.
The sailboat has been attracting crowds at Lighthouse Park since last week. It was tied up at the end of boat launch April 20, came loose the following day and ended up on the beach.
The boat previously had been moored in the Port of Everett, but its owner had a number of run-ins with the port, according to spokeswoman Lisa Lefeber. On April 18, the port told the owner that the boat would not be allowed on port property. The following Monday, the port’s security reported that the vessel had been untied and was drifting south down the Snohomish River channel.
Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486; salyer@heraldnet.com.
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