LETTERS

everyone's best interest.

David Demarest, Manager Giraffe Maui Marine Salvage & Supply, LLC

⇑⇓ CLEARLY A BAD LOOK

The first question is: How did a 'Scumseeker' make it to Maui? Lol. Clearly a bad look and no anchor alarms set.

I had this happen to me in New Zealand. Shit happens; no one wants to destroy a nice boat. The part about being on the buoy too long is irrelevant. It's an expensive learning experience.

John Sweeney Point Buckler

John — It got shipped out in November/December from the PNW, if I'm not mistaken.

The part about being on the buoy too long is not irrelevant to the situation. Those are day-use moorings for locally permitted day-charter boats, so an off-island boat coming to Maui and tying up overnight there is not cool. Also, they were built for 65-ft cats that probably weigh ~1/2 as much as the yacht in question. This is a bummer all the way around. The guys that run that boat are good people, and Honolua is a super-special place. This is an incredibly awful scenario for everyone involved.

Ronnie Simpson Latitude Contributor

⇑⇓ DAMN! WE NEED AN AMPHIBIOUS TRAVELIFT

Being a lifelong boatnik and Maui resident for 20-plus years, I've been following this obsessively. Dude owns a 94ft, 120-ton pleasure yacht and has LLC charter company. He was operating/having a family trip with four adults and four kids aboard. They moored to the buoy meant for two-hour day use in a beloved Marine Conservation bay that is normally used for 50-ft catamarans taking tourists snorkeling; it's also where world-class surfing happens.

He spent two nights illegally tied to the buoy and awoke at 5:45 a.m. to find they were aground on the shoreline. (The sound of running water is his insurance company washing their hands of this hot mess.) Dude says he was in the engine room getting ready to return to Lahaina.

I call BS! No one climbs out of their bunk and goes straight to the engine room. It's coffee then topsides to check the conditions, mooring etc. I'm certain Dude was sleeping one off and didn't even notice anything about the movement of the boat until he heard the sound of crunching coral reef and rocks against the aluminum hull. He also said that his line to the mooring buoy snapped. More BS! No one ties a luxury yacht with a dinghy painter. Dude! Time to bust out the Chapman's and learn some seamanship, like how to