Boat Grounded at Edithvale Beach

The beached boat being pounded by waves at Edithvale

At 7pm on Boxing Day, Chelsea SES received a call for assistance for a boat that was grounded and taking on water at Edithvale Beach near the Edithvale Lifesaving Club.

The tide was turning creating problems for the teams from Chelsea

The owners of the 5 Metre Runabout had left from Carrum to fish off Frankston then headed to Rickets Point and were heading back when they struck trouble.

The more water and sand that entered the boat, the heavier it became and the more difficult to move

Around Mordialloc Pier, they decided that they would not make it back and decided to head for shore. They then walked the boat along the shoreline until they reached Edithvale and that was as far as they got.

The first job was to secure the boat to the shore

On arrival at the scene, the boat was taking on water and was listing badly. The first problem was to get the craft up on to the beach, then to empty the water and then to get the boat back onto the trailer.

Pumping equipment was moved into position in case it was needed

Soon it was time for members Steve and Damian to get their feet wet

Two Chelsea members had to get out of uniform and into the water to check for damage to the boat and to attach the sling around the stern of the boat ready for attaching to the winch to pull the craft up onto the beach.

The winch line from Chelsea Transport is run out to the boat

A sling was taken around the boat and then hooked up to the winch

The boat is out of the water but now we need to get it back onto its trailer

After considerable manhandling, a sling was attached to the boat and then a line from Chelsea Transport’s winch was attached to the boat and the task of pulling it up onto the beach was under way.

Up she goes

Next, the boat needed to be run up onto the trailer and the winch was called on once again. After almost 3 hours, the boat and trailer were reunited, but the problems were not over yet.

Almost there

The boat and trailer were hooked up to Chelsea Transport for the journey back from Edithvale to the closest exit point at Chelsea, however, the soft sand and the weight of the boat and trailer led to Transport becoming bogged and had to be pulled free by Rescue 1.

Back on the trailer but thats where she stayed for the night

After a number of attempts it became clear that the boat was not going to budge and would be staying in Edithvale for the night until the City of Kingston could arrange towing assistance on the Monday (27/12/2010) morning. Council was contacted and were following up with the boats owners.

The big guns arrive for the boats journey back to Chelsea

At 7am on Tuesday morning (28/12/2010) some 36 hours after the salvage began, a large tractor, usually used to clean the beaches, was called in to tow the boat and trailer back to Chelsea Yacht Club where it could be met by its owners.

There's a message there somewhere. Arriving at the Chelsea Ycht Club car park

After the short journey along the sand from the Edithvale Lifesaving Club, the tractor and its load arrived safely at the Chelsea Yacht Club car park.

Sadly not every story like this has such a happy ending, but luckily, this one did!

Owners, boat and trailer together again and the final comment should go to the boats owner Chris who said just as he was leaving; "anyone want to buy a boat"; maybe his days of messing about in boats has come to an end; just like this job!