The Mermaid's final voyage
Sunken sailboat retrieved from Arlington
By Ellie Graham
The 60 foot Mermaid is submerged Aug. 13, 2024, at the Port of Arlington marina. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality coordinated efforts to dispose of the unsalvageable sailboat.
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality/Contributed Photo
ARLINGTON — The Mermaid, a 60-foot sailboat that's been docked at the Port of Arlington for eight years, now rests on dry land, a month after it sank into the marina with 900 gallons of diesel onboard.
Officials said cleanup efforts retrieved about 550 gallons of the fuel. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality said the remaining 350 gallons likely dissipated or was unrecoverable from the Columbia River.
Dylan Darling, a public affairs specialist with the DEQ, said no negative environmental impacts have been identified from the spill so far. But Darling said incidents of this nature have public health and environmental impacts, involving concern for aquatic life and water quality due to diesel pollution.
The department said the boat, which eventually was lifted out of the marina and onto dry land, was unsalvageable. The sail was the only part of the boat that did not submerge.
Darling added it's not unusual for boats to sink in Oregon waters.
The incident was reported to the Department for Environmental Quality and the port was closed after people noticed the Mermaid was sinking at about 8:30 p.m. Aug. 13. Cleanup crews arrived and found the vessel was leaking diesel at 3 p.m. Aug. 14.
The initial response involved emergency crews depositing 1,000 feet of hard oil booms into the marina followed by an additional 3,000 feet of the material to contain the spread of fuel, which also seeped into rocks in the area.
The leaking was reported to have stopped by Aug. 16 as cleanup efforts continued.
A voluntary memorandum of understanding helped guide the cleanup effort and was signed on Aug. 25 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, DEQ and the Port of Arlington. The document outlined cooperative goals and responsibilities, said Jed Crowther, executive director of the port.
With spills of this volume, federal assistance is called on, bringing the EPA into the fold.
In addition to the DEQ and the EPA, the the cleanup involved contracted personnel. More than 30 emergency response workers were enlisted.
On Aug. 26, crews deployed two cranes and a floating barge to lift the bulk of the wooden vessel from the water and place it in a nearby lot. Crowther said due to the weight, parts of the boat were lifted from the water the following day.
The DEQ identified Edward Stanton as the owner of the Mermaid. He declined an interview request about the incident.
The boat, said to have been built in 1938 as a trawler and converted into a recreational vessel, isn't the first to sink in Arlington. Last winter, a smaller boat containing 20 gallons of fuel also submerged, prompting a two-day retrieval process, Darling said.
The incident caused damage to deck cleats at the dock, Crowther said. An underwater assessment is underway to check the condition and stability of the deck.
The cause of the Mermaid's sinking remains underdetermined and under investigation.
With the cleanup operations complete, the marina and boat launch was reopened to the public Wednesday, Aug. 30.
Disposal of the vessel was coordinated by the Port of Arlington and the DEQ's solid-waste management team. The Mermaid's remains were hauled off from the marina Friday, Sept. 13 and transported to Arlington waste management site.