The Harpswell Select Board has approved spending up to $15,000 from the town’s Marine Hazard Fund to complete the cleanup and removal of an abandoned boat currently being stored at the Recycling Center.
The board approved the expenditure at its meeting on Thursday, April 9. A memo from interim Harbormaster Darcie Couture says the funds will be used to “safely and legally remove all hazardous liquids from the boat and then immediately move forward with complete demolition and removal.”
The vessel was once moored in Mackerel Cove, but in summer 2024 it began taking on water and nearly sank, town officials have said.
Then-Harbormaster Paul Plummer has said he had the boat hauled out and moved to George J. Mitchell Field after his staff pumped it out twice and contacted Sea Tow to intervene a third time.
The derelict boat’s prolonged presence at the town-owned park caused some residents to question what it was doing there. It was later moved to the A. Dennis Moore Recycling Center and Transfer Station.
The town had been hesitant to conduct final cleanup and removal without professional help because the boat may still contain fuel, oil or other environmental hazards.
Harpswell officials have said they spent months trying to contact the boat’s owner, Andrew Coyne, through certified letters, phone calls, emails and even hand delivery by the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office.
None of those efforts were successful, they said. Similarly, the Anchor was unable to reach Coyne for comment.
