TUSCUMBIA, Ala. (AP) - If your vehicle breaks down on the side of the road, motorists have the option of calling roadside assistance services to come to their aid.
But what if you’re on the Tennessee River or Shoal Creek and your boat runs out of gas, or the engine will not start?
As Colbert County Emergency Management Agency Director Mike Melton admits, there is no wrecker service on the water.
“On the river, there really are no services I’m aware of other than emergency responders who can come help you,” Melton said.
And that’s who has been receiving the calls — local E-911 services.
Melton estimates his office receives 30 to 35 calls per month from stranded or missing boaters between March and October, the typical pleasure boating months. This does not include emergency calls involving drownings or capsized vessels.
“The other night we had a jet ski stranded out on Sandy Beach,” Melton said. “There was no way he could go anywhere.”
Melton said there is an unmet need for this type of service, which really shouldn’t fall on emergency responders. He said Colbert EMA only has a flat bottom boat, which might not be adequate for towing certain size vessels.
“I don’t think emergency responders … should go out and get stranded boaters,” Melton said.
He said Cherokee Rescue Squad and Florence Police Department have assisted Colbert EMA in the past.
Colbert County commissioners have given Melton the green light to determine if anyone in the private sector is interested in getting into the “boat wrecker” business. It would be someone boaters could call that would, for a price, tow them in.
He said the service would not cost the county any money.
Lauderdale County EMA Director George Grabryan said his 911 office also receives “a fair number” of calls from stranded boaters.
“As far as any written policy, we don’t have one,” Grabryan said.
He said the most common problems are electrical, engine and fuel issues.
He said Florence police and fire departments often assist with stranded boaters. The EMA office has a pontoon style boat it uses.
Grabryan said the vessels they’re purchased are for rescue operations, “not road service.”
Kyle Friauf, harbormaster at the Florence Harbor Marina, said there are businesses that will help stranded boaters, but they’re not on Wilson Lake or this end of Pickwick Lake.
“Generally, speaking for myself, I have towed in people more than once while I was out on the water,” Friauf said.
He said most boaters will assist other boaters, but once it starts getting dark and boaters head for home, it could be difficult to find assistance.
The Boat Owners Association of the United States, or Boat US, offers a variety of services for the recreational boater, including towing packages. The nearest locations are in Decatur and Pickwick Dam, Tennessee, nearly 50 miles from the Shoals. Boaters must pay an annual fee for towing services.
Ronnie Fauntroy of Boat US said they would provide service in the Shoals, but they also have independent towers they can call for members and non-members. Non-members would have to pay the full cost of the service.
Melton asked County Attorney Edgar Black if the county could charge for services if it assists a boater who has run out of fuel or has engine problems.
“It’s not something that’s killing us, but it’s tough on the system to find someone to go out and help these people,” Melton said. “You can’t just not help them. We’re just trying to be fair to everybody.”
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Information from: TimesDaily, https://www.timesdaily.com/
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