Letters: Boat Accident

Editor, The Friday Flyer

Marine Patrol struck my boat on Aug. 12 and the POA refused to provide insurance information to me as would be expected if the tables were turned. Cory at the POA told me to file a claim with my own insurance company.

On the day of the accident, we ran out of fuel and patrol offered to tow us into our cove nearby. Little Bass Cove has several docks situated closely together, which I mentioned to the driver prior to him pulling into the cove.

As he drove into the cove, I noticed that he was distracted by the dock he was headed for and not on how close my boat was to the dock. He put his boat into reverse to avoid hitting the dock and ended up hitting my boat. I tried to warn him but it was too late. He slammed into my boat, causing thousands of dollars worth of damage.

At that point, I was forced to jump into the water and pull my boat into my dock to avoid additional damage. The driver seemed unqualified to handle this simple navigational task in our cove. We are fortunate that this wasn’t an emergency requiring a quick response and decisive well-trained boat captains.

Given the tight cove it is, the driver had to back all the way out of the cove. The POA has had numerous opportunities to correct this situation in the cove. More than six cove meetings have left this issue unresolved.

The POA is refusing to properly address the safety of this cove and is allowing an additional 14 and a half feet wide dock to be installed without consideration of the adjacent neighbors. They’re just forcing it in. The safety of the community should always be considered. Why isn’t it?

Scott Fellhoelter