Mission Bay jetty rebuild can’t come fast enough for some.

Two mariners were on their way in from a night of lobster fishing when they became disoriented in the rough seas and dark waters and ended up on Dog Beach. The 19′ Sea Pro suffered very little damage because of the quick mobilization of the Vessel Assist San Diego Salvage Team.
 
Captain Tony Olson arrived on scene first and with the assistance of the lifeguards pulled the stricken 19 foot boat out of the surf and higher onto the beach. The San Diego Lifeguards requested we did not send a swimmer in by water and pull the boat out to sea due to the surf and rip tide conditions. Captain Rob Butler (Owner Vessel Assist San Diego) brought in his 2008 Ford F250 designed for beach land extractions with his crew of Captain Shane Thompson and Nathan Wohlrab . Captain Tony hooked the trailer to his F-250 and backed it into position. Holes were dug to bury the trailer wheels lowering the height of the trailer. A block and tackle rig was attached to the trailer and Rob’s winch cable from his 10,000 lb Warn winch was rigged and attached to the boat. After just a few short minutes the boat was on the trailer. Captain Olson’s diesel powered 4X4 with 35″ wheels pulled the boat trailer out of the hole and started up to the parking lot. Because of the soft sand and the weight of the boat and trailer the winch had to be used to pull Captain Olson’s truck (with the grounded boat and trailer in tow) up a hill and into the parking lot where the owner could take over trailering it. It was a lucky night for the two mariners. They hit a sand beach and the boat did not turn over in the surf. Nobody was hurt as they stepped off the boat on to the beach.

South Mission Bay Jetty is currently undergoing a major rebuild, about 250′ of rock will be added to the south jetty and then the channel will be dredged to make it deeper to prevent breaking waves in rough conditions. The dredged sand will be placed onto the nearby beach for all the beachgoers to enjoy. Once completed, the extra 250′ of jetty will place boaters who like to cut it close far enough away from the dangerous rip current that is produced near the exiting jetty. Captain Rob Butler says, “Cutting close to any jetty is a gamble and risk no boater should take. It’s best to go to a point 1 mile west of the entrance lined up with the middle of the jetty and head right down the middle. The problem with cutting it close is if something goes wrong with your boat or you wrap a line in your props you have no time to react or put an anchor out. Boaters should also be familiar with deploying their anchor and making sure it’s ready before heading in. Even a dragging anchor may buy a boater enough time for help to arrive. The San Diego Lifeguards have very fast boats and are very good at what they do, but if you’re at a full drift as opposed to anchored or even a dragging anchor the extra seconds may save your boat or even your life.”