Residents of Saanich’s Cadboro Bay neighbourhood will spend their Monday morning identifying the ownership of a large sailing vessel that washed up on the Oak Bay side of the beach.
The vessel — which had been anchored in Cadboro Bay — washed up Saturday. As of Monday morning, no person had come forward claiming ownership of it, said Eric Dahli of the Dead Boat Society, who will be checking out the site later this morning.
From the available evidence, it does not look quite a derelict boat, he said. This said, it is only the most recent arrival to the area.
As of this writing, two vessels remained beached — Saturday’s newcomer and a double-keeled vessel that has remained on the Saanich side of the beach since early January.
Its ownership remains undetermined. “No one has come forward,” said Dahli. “We have tried, we have tried, we have tried,” he said.
Various bureaucratic obstacles on the federal level have held up efforts to remove that vessel, and Saanich may step in with financial assistance, said Dahli, adding current plans call for the boat to be towed to Hartland Landfill following an environmental assessment.
Several smaller vessels also remain on land after having washed up. Two other boats, meanwhile, remain under water in the bay.
Updates to follow.
