S. Oregon Coast Derelict Boat Removed - May be Tsunami Debris

Published 02/24/2013

(Coos Bay, Oregon) – Oregon officials have removed a derelict boat from the southern Oregon coast that may be tsunami debris from Japan – but that is still only a possibility. (Photos courtesy OPRD)

The vessel was at Horsefall Beach near Coos Bay until this week. It is 30 feet long and nonmotorized, with some Japanese writing on it. The origin of the boat has not yet been firmly determined, however, and simply could be the usual debris that regularly washes up on the Oregon coast. Officials had no word yet on how long it had been in the water.

Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) officials said there was no evidence of pollution or other hazardous materials.

Biologists with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the University of Oregon's Institute of Marine Biology took samples and will send them to the Oregon State University's Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport for identification.

The boat was removed on February 21 from the southern Oregon coast beach and was transported to Les Sanitation in Coos Bay. Contractor Johnson Rock of Coos Bay conducted the removal and transportation of the debris, which cost the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department $2,500.

The Oregon and Washington coasts have already seen some sizable objects coming in from the Japan tsunami of 2011. Washington had a piece of a dock and a motorcycle, which Oregon has been the recipient of a large dock, a small boat and countless bits of plastic.

More photos of tsunami debris from the Oregon coast below:

The tsunami dock at Newport in 2012 (photo Terry Morse)

The tsunami dock at Newport in 2012 (photo Terry Morse)

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