ANNA MARIA – The cleanup of the shipwreck debris field along the Anna Maria shoreline is mostly complete.
The U.S. Coast Guard rescued three commercial fishermen from a 70-foot commercial fishing vessel that took on water on Friday evening 2 miles west of Anna Maria Island.
After being abandoned at sea, the superstructure of the commercial fishing boat Warrior – owned by the Versaggi Shrimp Corp. in Tampa – broke apart in the rough seas, leaving the remaining hull submerged in approximately 14 feet of water.
By Saturday morning, a great deal of shipwreck debris had washed ashore in Anna Maria. To a lesser degree, debris also washed ashore in Holmes Beach, Bradenton Beach and Longboat Key.
Saturday morning, the city of Anna Maria, with the county’s help, initiated an extensive cleanup effort that was essentially completed by the time the sun set Sunday evening.
Early Saturday afternoon, Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy spoke to Joe Versaggi by phone and the two men agreed that the Versaggi Shrimp Corp. would ask its insurance carrier to pay for the cleanup efforts.
Due to rough seas, Sunday’s offshore diesel fuel containment and salvage efforts were postponed until Monday morning.
Situation updates
Late Sunday morning, Murphy provided city commissioners with a detailed email update.
“The debris field from the wrecked shrimp trawler has pretty much all been removed, with the exception of a few very large pieces remaining near the beach access at Fir Ave., and a large water tank near Bean Point.
“These pieces will be removed over the next few days after cutting them into manageable pieces. The fuel smell has dissipated and appears to have not caused any major damage to the beach or dune system. However, our staff, FDEP and USCG are continuing to monitor the beaches to ensure there is no impact,” Murphy’s email said.
“As to the remains of the trawler, salvage operations with divers are scheduled to begin today just off of Bean Point where the trawler ran aground. The fuel tank, which had a maximum capacity of 7,000 gallons of diesel fuel, remains offshore attached to the hull in approximately 14 feet of water. USCG aerial observations indicate no further leakage. Still, this tank continues to pose a potential threat to our beaches should it rupture prior to or during salvage operations.
“The debris removed from the beaches has been placed in dumpsters and moved to the vacant lot by the Historical Society museum. The insurance adjuster for the shrimp company owning the trawler will inspect the debris this week,” Murphy wrote.
His email included a copy of the Coast Guard debris chart that indicated the locations of the wreck and the debris drift.
“Dean Jones and his Public Works staff, along with some incredible help from Charlie Hunsicker’s Manatee County staff, all did a remarkable job of quickly responding to this emergency. They came in on short notice during one of the coldest days in months and worked long hours under extreme and adverse conditions to restore our beaches to normal. We owe all of them our gratitude and a ‘thank you’ for a job well done,” Murphy’s email said.
Additional updates
At approximately 6:45 p.m. Saturday evening, Murphy provided a situation update.
“The United States Coast Guard informed me this evening that after their last flyover, the vessel’s fuel tank appears to still be secure. It is their opinion that the fuel we have on our beach is possibly remnants from the vessel’s bilge. The salvage boat will be on site between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. Sunday morning,” Murphy said via text message.
At approximately 1 p.m. on Sunday, Murphy provided a text message update that said, “Over 75 cubic yards of debris were picked up off our beaches. Last few pieces of debris placed in museum lot to be cut up and removed.”
At 6:40 p.m. Sunday evening, Murphy provided another text message update regarding the efforts to place a circular fuel spill containment boom in the water above and around the hull of the sunken ship.
“Not good news. Hoping for early a.m. placement tomorrow,” Murphy said in his text message that also contained a message he received from a Coast Guard representative.
“Sir, the tug and barge was on scene but could not conduct operations due to 4-foot seas and high winds. Additionally, these conditions would be outside of the parameters for effective boom deployment. Their plan tonight is to anchor behind the Island and get started first thing in the morning. Forecast tomorrow is much more favorable. They will be placing the buoy on the wreck this evening,” the Coast Guard message said.
When contacted at 10 p.m. Sunday evening, Murphy said the plan is to place 3,000 feet of containment boom in the water surrounding the submerged hull. Murphy said the entire superstructure is gone and all that remains is the hull.
Murphy said the city’s cleanup efforts were for the most part complete, with the exception of a large piece of debris still floating just offshore. Murphy said the Coast Guard’s aerial surveillance did not indicate a great deal of additional floating debris headed toward the Island.
“It’s pretty much over at this time, except for whether I’m going to get the money from the insurance company. That’s a whole different story,” Murphy said.
“When the mayor put out a call for help to respond to literally a shipwreck off Anna Maria Island, we bring the Cavalry!” said Charlie Hunsicker, director of Manatee County’s Parks and Natural Resources Department. “Got to be proud of this multi-department, multi-city team effort.”
When contacted Monday morning, Holmes Beach Police Chief Bill Tokajer said, “To my knowledge, we didn’t have a tremendous amount of debris, but our public works department and police department worked together to clean it up.”
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