A 35-foot sailboat named ‘Ramblynn,’ which ran aground on the reef in the Tranquility channel off Ambergris Caye in March this year is likely to remain there forever.
Following assessments made to the sailboat belonging to Canadian National Glen Peter and the area of the reef on which it remains stuck by personnel from the Belize Port Authority, the vessel has been deemed irretrievable. In an interview with Area Representative Honourable Andre Perez, he said it is a great challenge to remove the sailboat. “There is not much we can do; it’s too much of a project to extract from the reef, it will cost money, and we do not have that type of money,” said Perez. “But it is unfortunate,” Perez added that the boat is well embedded on the reef, and it will become part of it eventually. He also mentioned that one of the possible reasons for the accident might be because Belizean waters are not correctly mapped out. Perez pointed out that seismic testing expected to occur in 2016 was not for offshore oil exploration but to map out the Belizean seas.
Peter was reportedly traveling from Mexico to Guatemala when he ran aground on the reef in front of Ambergris Caye. Following the incident, Peter was allowed to return to Canada and was allegedly going to arrange the financing to remove the boat. However, no such arrangements have been made, and the last time the Port Authority was contacted, no answers were provided.
Although the initial assessments by the Department of Environment said no damage was done to that part of the barrier reef, not everyone was convinced. According to islanders acquainted with these types of investigations, the sailboat had to be removed before any proper assessment could occur. Damage to the reef is believed to be inevitable if the vessel remains there.
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