TowBoatUS San Diego saves ski boat from Sunset Cliffs

Vessel Assist San Diego was called to save a 2007 21′ Sea Ray that ran aground on Sunset Cliffs. With the boat already aground and it being well past dark, Robert Butler, President Vessel Assist San Diego, told the owner of the Sea Ray that Vessel Assist would do everything they could but the destruction of his boat was a strong possibility. Robert immediately dispatched a crew aboard the “Vessel Assist Ocean Beach” with 1200 feet of 1/2″ amsteel line; with a breaking strength of over 32,000lbs, it is light enough to swim in to a stricken vessel and strong enough to hold under the strain.
 
As the Vessel Assist crew sped away from the dock at 30 knots the moon disappeared into the ocean leaving the waters black and the shoreline even darker. Using the Garmin navigation system on board the Ocean Beach, Robert’s crew was able to find the grounded ski boat despite the extreme darkness and lack of coordinates. Once Vessel Assist reached the reported position they spotted lights flashing, so salvage diver Augustine Malfavon jumped into the water with the towline and swam to the beach. Only after getting all the way to shore did he realize that the lights were from people on a nearby beach and not those of the grounded vessel. Augustine, or “Auggie” as he’s known to his co-workers, had to swim back to the boat as the crew pulled in the 1200′ of line.

After a short search the Sea Ray was found in a shallow cove where the surf was breaking about 1200 feet from the beach. Once again Auggie entered the water while Travis Basom tended his line. The swim was long and the Salvage vessel was right in the breaking surf which made it very difficult for them to hold position and avoid pulling Auggie back as he swam in. By the time Auggie reached the beach and secured the towline to the Sea Ray, all 1200 feet of towline was payed out. With the tide coming in, the boat was starting bounce on the reef and drift toward the large jagged rocks on the cliffs. Auggie was able to secure the tow and the “Ocean Beach”, with twin 200 hp e-tech outboards, quickly pulled the Sea Ray into deeper water. After several heart pounding moments the 21 foot Sea Ray was delivered back to it’s owner with nothing more than a few scratches on the hull and a little damage to the outdrive. Given the fact that Vessel Assist San Diego was able to respond so quickly the Sea Ray was saved instead of being broken apart on Sunset Cliffs.