By Maddy Vitale
Summer means water enthusiasts hop on their surfboards, boats or kayaks and enjoy the ocean and bay breezes and tranquil time with nature.
A popular spot for water sports is the Rainbow Thoroughfare near the Ninth Street Bridge.
Recently, there was an unusual discovery floating in the water. It was an unmanned boat. And it’s still out there.
It was late in the afternoon on Sunday, June 10. Bob Woolery, a dentist and married father of two from Ocean City, decided to take his son, Jack, 5, out on the family boat.
“Jack is really into animals and the only animals around here are birds,” Woolery explained. “So, we went looking for an osprey nest.”
What they found was a bit alarming.
“I saw this small boat,” Woolery explained. “It had taken on water. It was just floating.”
Because it didn’t appear there was any immediate danger, Woolery decided to take his son to look for the bird nest, then head home and call the U.S. Coast Guard, which has a station in Ocean City.
“They took the information down,” he said, adding that the officials said they would investigate.
Coast Guard Officer Nathan Manetas confirmed Sunday that the Coast Guard is aware of the boat.
“It had taken on water and was partially submerged near the Ninth Street Bridge,” Manetas said. “Currently, it is still out there and marked with buoys.”
He noted that the Coast Guard is working with the boat’s owner to have it removed.
For Woolery, it was a different and somewhat eerie discovery. Not his typical water finds.
“Really, I find anything that people keep in their backyards or docks that blow in the water. I’ve found kayaks people didn’t tie down, boats, bumpers,” Woolery pointed out. “You could usually tell where these things come from based on which way the wind was blowing.”
He even found a floating jet ski dock and a few dock boxes, which people use to store items.
This was not the first time he found a boat, either.
“One time I found a Sunfish, a tiny sailboat that kids learn to sail on,” he said. “But this is the first time I found a nearly sunken boat.”
