Sunken Cuddy Cabin Recovery in East Lake Orient Park

Crazed gelcoat covered every surface of the 23 ft Rinker 232, like a road map nobody could read. A seized seacock had let the slip fill her slowly up to the deck line, and she sat there awash with the bow barely lifted.

The marina would not let us start until a gasoline sheen spreading between the pilings was handled. So we boomed the slip first, then bolted a pair of lift bags to the gunwales and let a diver set a third under the cuddy. We brought her up level, a few inches at a stretch, while the crew skimmed the surface with pads. The tow out to the ramp was slow and wet.

The job took half a day, and most of that went to spill control, not the lift. This was sunken boat removal where the cleanup was the real work. The stringers had soaked through and the engine was seized solid, so the Rinker rode out through Brandon to our yard for dismantling and recycling. We pulled the outdrive for salvage.