There’s no word on how or why it happened, but a boat remains partially submerged at the Paddle Wheel Park boat launch in Vernon.
An area resident noticed the boat Sunday morning. Vernon fire crews got a call about the vessel at around 1 p.m.
“There were no registration numbers on it that we could see,” said Jack Blair with Vernon Fire Rescue. Blair added RCMP are now likely looking for who owns the abandoned boat.
Fire crews attempted to mop up some fuel and oil that leaked from the sinking vessel, using pads and booms to confine the spill.
The Regional District of North Okanagan (RDNO) said an unknown amount of oil and fuel leaked but was contained to the boat launch area.
“It looks worse than it probably is because of the sheen [on the water],” said Blair. “But I don’t believe there was a lot of fuel or oil.”
The Canadian Coast Guard is responsible for dealing with the incident, as open water is under federal jurisdiction. It was notified Sunday and has given the City of Vernon clearance to remove the boat.
RDNO said Monday afternoon that the boat will be removed from the lake in the “next day or two.”
Pinkoski said the reason the boat was not removed sooner is that federal removal orders were needed before they could take it out of the lake.
Meanwhile, the Coast Guard said in a statement that there wasn’t any fuel or oil left to “recover” and the boom was placed only as a precaution.
There’s still no information on how the boat got there and if it was simply an abandoned vessel someone towed to shore.
The Coast Guard said officials don’t know who owned the boat and it had no identifying markings on it. It also did not have an engine when authorities found it.
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