A boat that washed up in Hawaii last month is the second this week identified as tsunami debris.
A 24-foot boat that washed ashore at Windward Oahu on Dec. 23 is part of the debris that drifted into the northern Pacific as a result of the March 2011 tsunami in Japan, the state Department of Land and Natural Resources has confirmed.
Department spokeswoman Deborah Ward said the state is waiting to see whether the owner of the boat in Japan wants the vessel back.
The boat is the fourth vessel and fifth piece of confirmed tsunami debris overall found around Hawaii.
Damien Marrero said Thursday he was with a group of friends when they found the capsized boat near the mouth of a stream at Punaluu.
Marrero said that judging from the beat-up condition of the boat, he thought it might be tsunami debris.
Marrero’s friend Leilehualani Kane said their hearts went out to the victims of the tsunami, especially the family of the Japanese owner. "We want to send our prayers and blessings to the family," Kane said.
The boat was taken to a state base yard in Haleiwa for cleaning.
An estimated 5 million tons of flotsam went into the sea from the tsunami that followed a 9.0-magnitude quake in March 2011.
Previously, four other confirmed items of tsunami debris had been found here since Sept. 19: a blue plastic bin, a fishing boat recovered 700 miles north of Maui by a Hawaii longline fisherman, a skiff found at Midway Atoll and a skiff in pieces found at Kahana Bay on Oahu.
More than 17 items gathered in the U.S., Canada and Mexico have been confirmed as lost during the Japanese tsunami. As of Nov. 29 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration had received about 1,400 official debris reports from the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
State and federal officials are encouraging the public to report possible tsunami debris.
Officials are worried the debris might be carrying invasive aquatic species and, if large enough, create a navigational hazard.
To report possible tsunami debris, call the department at 587-0400 or send an email to dlnr.marine.debris@hawaii.gov and disasterdebris@noaa.gov. For the latest information on tsunami debris, visit marinedebris.noaa.gov/tsunamidebris, the NOAA Marine Debris Program website.
