Crews could refloat reef-bound fishing boat this week

A salvage company continued working Sunday to prepare to remove a grounded fishing vessel off Waikiki as early as this week, a Coast Guard spokeswoman said.

Workers spent Sunday reinforcing the hull of the 79-foot Pacific Paradise offshore of Kaimana Beach, said Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Tara Molle.

She said the company will pump the water from the affected hulls once the repair work is complete and attempt to refloat the vessel to take it to a designated spot where it will be sunk.

The Environmental Protection Agency has already approved the area where the ship will be submerged.

The boat ran aground the night of Oct. 10 with 20 people on board. No one aboard the vessel called for help when the boat ran aground.

Witnesses alerted the Coast Guard.

The previous salvage company made several attempts to remove the boat, but a fire on the boat delayed the removal process and allowed diesel fuel to spill into the ocean.

Last week a helicopter was used to remove 16 sheets of steel from the boat to increase its buoyancy so it can be refloated.

The sheets were aboard the Pacific Paradise when it grounded, and each sheet weighed about 245 pounds.

The Coast Guard said water tests show no fuel or oil around the boat, but a visible sheen was seen earlier this month. Swimmers also reported smelling and feeling the fuel in the water.

Water tests were previously being conducted twice a week, but two weeks ago officials began testing the water daily in part because of concerns from the Waikiki Aquarium, which is near the wreck site and pumps seawater into its tanks.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.