TowBoatUS Manasquan recovered a 25-foot cruiser that had remained partially submerged in local waters since Hurricane Sandy devastated the New Jersey coast in October 2012.
MANASQUAN, NJ — Nearly 14 years after Hurricane Sandy tore across the Jersey Shore, one of the storm’s lingering remnants has finally been pulled from the water.
TowBoatUS Manasquan said crews recently recovered a 25-foot cruiser that sank during Sandy in 2012 and had remained partially submerged ever since. While the company was out on the waters during this weekend’s nor’easter recovering boats that had been lost from their moorings, days before the storm, they recovered a boat that was sunk during Superstorm Sandy.
“Another derelict vessel removed from our local waters,” the marine towing company said in announcing the recovery.
Cruiser remained in water since 2012
According to TowBoatUS Manasquan, the boat went down during Hurricane Sandy and remained there for almost 14 years before crews successfully removed it. The company did not disclose who owned the vessel, why it had remained in the water for so long or exactly where it was recovered.
Photographs from the operation showed crews working to remove the deteriorated vessel after years of exposure to saltwater and the elements.
“After nearly 14 years partially submerged, the vessel was successfully removed,” TowBoatUS said.
Sandy devastated Monmouth and Ocean county waterways
The recovery is another reminder of just how much damage Sandy left behind when it struck New Jersey on Oct. 29, 2012. Many scars still remain across the Jersey Shore, 14 years after it made landfall.
Monmouth and Ocean counties experienced some of the most severe coastal destruction, with storm surge pushing into the Manasquan River, Barnegat Bay and other waterways.
Boats were ripped from docks and marinas, thrown onto land or sunk as waterfront infrastructure was destroyed across the Jersey Shore. Up and down the Jersey Shore, derilict boats from the storm can still be found today.
Derelict boats can remain long after storms
Sunken and abandoned boats can become long-term problems in waterways, particularly when ownership is unclear or recovery is expensive and technically difficult. Beyond navigation concerns, deteriorating vessels can contain fuel, oil, batteries and other materials that become environmental hazards over time.
For TowBoatUS Manasquan, the latest recovery meant removing one more piece of Sandy’s physical legacy from local waters.
The boat had survived nearly 14 years underwater. Its removal came just weeks before the 14th anniversary of the storm that put it there.