honolua yacht sinking

DLNR: Grounded yacht scuttled at sea after being ‘successfully’ freed at Honolua Bay

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The grounded luxury yacht ‘Nakoa’ was freed Sunday afternoon after three unsuccessful attempts in two weeks — but now, it’s at the bottom of the ocean.

At around 1 p.m. Sunday, the salvage ship “Kahi” was able to free the 120-ton yacht Nakoa.

Videos revealed a crunching of the yacht’s hull as the tugboat pulled it 90 degrees off the rocky shoreline.

Ideal weather conditions and a 3,300 horsepower tug made the third salvage attempt successful.

Crews were hoping to bring the yacht to Honolulu, but officials said they had to let the ship sink Sunday afternoon in about 800 feet of water.

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DLNR’s Chair, Dawn Chang credited the salvage company for their patience and seeing the job through.

As the vessels were leaving, humpback whales were seen escorting the trio out.

“I will tell you, we were all pulling, we were all literally praying,” said Chang. “I think things were in alignment. I think the whales that escorted that vessel out there, also wanted it out.”

City leaders watched as the Nakoa was pulled away.

“All of us up there watching filled up with a big sense of relief,” said Maui County Councilmember Tamara Paltin.

“I’m very grateful to the State of Hawaii for their efforts in finding a salvage company, who was able to do the do their task,” said Mayor Richard Bissen. “The important thing was to get it removed, but the cost I think, has been borne by the taxpayer and that really should be the person responsible.”

The Save Honolua Coalition has been keeping a close eye on the 94-foot yacht since it ran aground near the Honolua-Mokuleia marine sanctuary.

“There is a scar on the shoreline rocks and part of the reef,” said John Carty of the Save Honolua Coalition.

“Let that scar be a reminder to us, that we need to make sure that we all do what we have to do, to make sure this never happens again.”

PREVIOUS COVERAGE:

• Salvage work continues for grounded yacht at Honolua Bay; owner faces hefty fines
• DLNR: Crews successfully defuel luxury yacht grounded at Honolua Bay
• Cleanup efforts underway after grounded luxury yacht leaked fuel into Maui bay
• Maui officials: Luxury yacht that ran aground near marine sanctuary leaked fuel into bay

The state said “aggressively pursue recouping all salvage costs from the owner, in addition to the cost to repair damage to coral reefs and live rock.”

The environmental impact of the sinking is still unclear at this time.

Nearly two weeks ago, crews removed all the fuel and other hazardous materials on board .

DLNR said they’ll return to the location this week to conduct a post-incident damage assessment and work with the Attorney General’s Officer to hold the owner of the yacht accountable.

“Both for the damages to the reef, the environment, all the costs associated with the removal of the vessel, as well as all the administrative costs,” said Chang.

Hawaii News Now reached out to the yacht’s owner for comment and are waiting to hear back.

We’re also waiting to hear from the DLNR on what will happen to the sunken yacht.

Copyright 2023 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.

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Grounded yacht sinks after being freed from Honolua Bay

The grounded luxury yacht that sat on the shores of Honolua Bay for nearly two weeks has been scuttled, or deliberately sunk, shortly after salvage crews freed it on Sunday.

The Nakoa, one of two luxury yachts owned by Noelani Yacht Charters, was banked on a reef about 700 feet outside the Honolua-Mokulēʻia Bay Marine Life Conservation District on Feb. 20.

The state's Department of Land and Natural Resources announced Saturday that a salvage ship and tractor tug would make a third attempt at freeing the yacht — this time using a 3,300 horsepower tug.

Residents and community leaders gathered around to watch the Nakoa break free from the rocks, which DLNR said was made possible this time due to the "ideal weather and ocean conditions."

"It was a very complex mission," DLNR Chair Dawn Chang said. "The weather had to be just right. The tide had to be just right, but this was a perfect day."

At the time of its freeing, DLNR said they were unsure whether or not the yacht would make it all the way back to Honolulu or have to be scuttled offshore.

Later that evening, the department's Boating and Ocean Recreation division reported that the boat was scuttled in 800 feet of water.

"It had taken on water, was listing starboard and riding bow high after being pulled free by a tractor tug early this afternoon," DLNR stated in a release.

Chang said that the department is going to use "all of its resources" to hold the yacht's owner accountable for the damages to the reef and the costs associated with the removal.

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Grounded yacht at Honolua finally freed but later sinks offshore

Luxury yacht, the Nakoa, was finally removed Sunday by rigging crews after it was grounded on the rocks and reefs for nearly two weeks at Honolua Bay. It later sank in 800 feet of water. DLNR photo

The Maui News 

A luxury yacht that had been grounded for nearly two weeks at Honolua Bay was finally freed Sunday afternoon after a rigging crew worked over the weekend to remove the boat, but the 94-foot-long boat later sank offshore. 

Just outside the Honolua-Mokuleia Marine Life Conservation District, the salvage ship Kahi, which is operated by Visionary Marine LLC, and a tractor tug called the Mary Catherine, operated by Sause Brothers Inc. of Honolulu, pulled the Nakoa off nearshore rocks and reefs during high tide. 

However, during towing, the yacht was scuttled in 800 feet of water, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation reported a few hours later. 

It had taken on water, was listing starboard and riding bow high after being pulled free by the tractor tug early Sunday afternoon, the DLNR said. 

A rigging crew worked all day Saturday and again Sunday morning securing the rigging to the Nakoa.

Prior to the 3,300-horsepower tug hooking up, the salvage crew used a carbon cutter to free either the yacht’s prop or rudder, believed to be the reason earlier attempts did not succeed, according to a news release. 

Sunday provided the best weather and ocean conditions for the complex operation to free the Nakoa, the DLNR said. 

DLNR Chair Dawn Chang watched the salvage operation with Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen Jr. and Maui County Council Member Tamara Paltin, who holds the West Maui residency seat.

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Owners contest $1.8M fine after grounded yacht causes damage to Hawaiian coral reef

The owners of the 28.1-metre Nakoa have requested a formal case hearing to contest a $1,818,851.97 fine given by the Board of Land and Natural Resources. 

This follows an incident that saw the Sunseeker yacht break free of her mooring in the protected Honolua-Mokulēʻia Bay Marine Life Conservation District and cause damage to over 100 coral colonies and over 1,500 square metres of live rock on Maui’s west coast (20 February 2023).

Inclement weather resulted in Nakoa being stranded for two weeks and across three separate rescue attempts.

On 26 April 2024, the Board increased the fine from $117,000 to account for biological and cultural damages, as well as "emotional distress to the community".

"A slap on the wrist in this situation, would be a slap in the face of this community," said John Carty of the Save Honolua Coalition.

The owners' legal representative argued that there is no basis to impose liability as the grounding took place following the theft of the vessel. They also noted that damage from the initial grounding must be separated from the damage related to salvage.

Prior to the salvage, the DNLR confirmed that fuel, batteries and other pollutants were safely removed from the vessel. Around 470 gallons (1,779 litres) of petroleum products and 14 marine batteries were recovered from the yacht, with helicopters transporting 55-gallon (208 litres) drums of fuel from the boat to a staging area where it could be disposed of.

Before the defuelling began, eyewitness accounts reported considerable fuel leakage surrounding Nakoa.

At the time, DLNR first deputy Laura Kaakua said: "We understand everyone’s frustration with the grounding and harm to the reef at Honolua, a bay with abundant marine life that’s loved by many residents of Maui and visitors alike."

The initial fine was recommended by the DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources and included $26,700 for damaging stony coral, $33,520 for damaging live rock, $56,851 for the cost of the investigation, and $400 for violations.

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Luxury yacht finally freed from Maui near-shore reef only to sink in 800 feet of water

Nearly two weeks after a 120-ton, 94-foot luxury yacht grounded in Honolua Bay on Maui, a salvage ship and a tugboat from Honolulu finally freed the vessel named Nakoa from the rocky shoreline.

But there is no happy ending for the yacht.

It is now at the bottom of the ocean, about 800 feet deep.

The multimillion-dollar yacht had suffered severe holes in the hull during the days it was grounded, with the rough surf pounding it repeatedly against the rocks of the shoreline.

“It had taken on water, was listing starboard and riding bow high after being pulled free by a tractor tug early this afternoon,” according to the state Division of Boating and Ocean Recreation.

The yacht sank.

It was the end to an ordeal that began nearly two weeks ago when the yacht grounded just outside the Honolua-Mokulē‘ia Bay Marine Life Conservation District. Although the area has day-use moorings with a time limit of two hours, yacht owner Jim Jones told media that he didn’t know the rules  and stayed overnight with his family when one of the lines snapped and the boat hit the rocks.

It has been quite the ordeal to salvage the boat.

Once the boat stated leaking fuel, the U.S. Coast Guard federalized the vessel, meaning it has jurisdiction over the yacht which cannot be moved until all hazardous material was removed .

When that process was done the state Department of Land and Natural Resources took over because Jones said he did not have the money to pay for the salvage operation. The state organized and is paying for the operation, but will be sending Jones a bill, which initially was for $460,000 plus. But that will be sure to go up due to all the problems encountered during the salvage.

Once the hazardous material was removed, Visonary Marines’s salvage ship Kahi from Honolulu tried to removed the yacht from the reef but failed after multiple pulls. Sause Brothers’ tractor tug Mary Catherine was called in from Honolulu to help, but the second attempt with both boats also failed. Then bad weather forced both salvage boats to return to Honolulu.

They returned to Maui on Saturday.

A crew from the salvage ship rigged lines to the yacht Nakoa   all day Saturday and Sunday morning to prepare for the third attempt.

Prior to the 3,300-horsepower tug hooking up, the salvage crew used a carbon cutter to free either the yacht’s prop or rudder, believed to be the reason earlier attempts did not succeed, according to the Department of Land and Natural Resources.

On Sunday, there were ideal weather and ocean conditions for the complex and costly operation. Once the tug turned the boat 90 degrees it pulled out into deeper water. 

“The yacht was listing to one side and riding bow high and it’s unknown at this time whether it was successfully pulled all the way to Honolulu or had to be scuttled in 1,000-foot-deep water offshore,” the Department and Land and Natural Resources said.

Department Chair Dawn Chang watched the salvage operation on Sunday with Maui Mayor Richard Bissen and Maui County Council member Tamara Paltin. Chang said she heard almost immediately from Randy Cates, the owner and operator of Visionary Marine. 

“I’m beyond words,” Chang said. “I extended our appreciation to him and his crew for doing a tough, thankless job when others in the industry were questioning the wisdom of taking it on. We all thought today was it. It was either going to happen or not. I’m extremely pleased.” 

Chang said the state will aggressively pursue recouping all salvage costs from the owner, which originally were set at $460,000 plus before delays and the need for a second boat were included in the cost.

It also does not include the cost to repair damage to coral reefs and live rock. A team from the state Division of Aquatic Resources will return to the grounding location this week to conduct a post-incident damage assessment. 

To read more about yacht tales in Hawai’i waters involving a pop star, Russian oligarch, coral wrecker and thief, click here .

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The Wrecked Luxury Yacht Caused ‘Significant Damage’ In Honolua Bay

DLNR says it will hold the owner responsible for the costs of the environmental toll.

The Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources’ initial investigation has found that t he luxury yacht that ran aground in Honolua Bay late last month caused “significant damage” to the marine habitat.  

Divers within the Division of Aquatic Resources documented that the 94-foot, 120-ton yacht that wrecked on Feb. 20 wreaked havoc on the corals and live rock covering at least 19,434 square feet, according to a DLNR news release Thursday.  

“We are looking for two things: the initial impact when the vessel grounded, and then the scars that occurred as the boat was dragged back off the flat reef surface into deeper water,” Russell Sparks, the aquatic biologist leading the assessment team, said in the release.

At least 19 coral colonies were damaged or destroyed when the vessel operated by Noelani Yacht Charters first ran aground, the preliminary assessment found. The vessel remained stuck on the rocky coastline in extremely shallow water for almost two weeks, until it was hauled away and sank on its way to Oahu on Sunday . 

Divers found that scars from the vessel stretched almost 250 feet into the deeper water. In that area, more than 100 coral colonies were affected, and damage to live rock covered nearly 2,099 square feet, according to the news release. 

DLNR is seeking to hold the yacht’s owner, Jim Jones, responsible for the costs to haul away the yacht and the environmental damage. In the release, the agency said it won’t hold the salvage company or tug company that pulled the boat off the reef responsible for any damage. 

The agency initially estimated that it would cost nearly $500,000 for the salvage costs alone. It plans to present a final report on the extent of the damage to the Board of Land and Natural Resources, along with recommended fines and penalties.

Civil Beat’s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by grants from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation and the Fred Baldwin Memorial Foundation.

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