Pacific Paradise finally towed away, sunk at sea

The Pacific Paradise sank to its watery grave Thursday afternoon, ending a nearly two-month saga to get the grounded fishing vessel off the reef at Kaimana Beach.

With the help of a small swell and the tug Pi‘ilani, salvage crews had successfully towed the 79-foot commercial boat beyond the reef by 7:15 a.m. Thursday and to a disposal site 13 miles south of Oahu where it was sunk at 2:15 p.m., U.S. Coast Guard officials said.

Cheers erupted from spectators on shore as the fishing boat moved forward.

“It was a long time coming, and we did a lot of planning,” said Coast Guard Operational Section Chief Gregg Maye. “A lot of work went into making sure we did this safely and properly, and it was just a huge success … to watch the boat being towed away.”

The boat, which grounded on a shallow reef just off Waikiki before midnight Oct. 10, proved to be a challenge to remove — leaking fuel, catching fire and thwarting multiple salvage attempts. Helicopters were used to remove heavy sheets of metal to lessen its weight.

Just over a mile offshore, the tow was switched over to the tug American Contender for the transit out to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-approved disposal site, where crews planed to sink the boat in nearly 1,800 feet of water.

During the operation, the Coast Guard said, minimal pollution entered the water. Resolve Marine Group was the lead contractor for removal services.

On Tuesday crews worked to repair a bulkhead between the fish hold and engine room by installing a 5-by-6-foot metal plate underwater after original plans to tow the boat away at high tide over the weekend did not work out. The intrusion of water into the fish hold made the vessel too heavy, according to the Coast Guard. On Wednesday crews refloated the Pacific Paradise and were able to move it about 600 feet into the sandy channel before losing the tide.

While the Coast Guard will continue its investigation into the cause of the grounding, a process that will likely take several months, Maye said the state Department of Land and Natural Resources will handle damage assessments and cleanup efforts.

DLNR crews began an initial assessment of the reef Nov. 29.

“These efforts are complex, and with the addition of unpredictable ocean conditions, the position, size and weight of the ship on the reef, and its proximity to one of Hawaii’s most populated beach areas, it was important that we all worked together to remove the ship while minimizing risk to people and to the environment,” said DLNR Chairwoman Suzanne Case in a news release. “DLNR is conducting a full assessment of the reef and any associated natural resource damage that occurred during the event.”

“Now that the vessel is removed, the area will be cleaned by salvage crews to remove any man-made materials. DLNR is advising everyone to keep away from the area for safety, while these followup operations are taking place,” the agency said in a news release.

The fishing boat, owned by Honolulu-based TWOL LLC, got stuck on the reef just before midnight Oct. 10 with 20 aboard — one American captain and 19 foreign workers. The owner’s insurance is supposed to cover the removal costs, expected to be at least $1 million. The Coast Guard can consider using the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund if there are additional costs, said Coast Guard spokeswoman Sara Muir.

The crash raised new questions about the safety and working conditions of foreign laborers in the Hawaii fleet. No one aboard called for help when it crashed, and rescue teams responded to eyewitness reports. The rescued 19 foreign workers were taken by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents to a pier to be interviewed and placed on other fishing boats.

A 2016 Associated Press investigation revealed the fishing fleet exploits a loophole in federal law to employ men from impoverished Southeast Asian and Pacific nations for a fraction of the pay an American worker would get, with some making as little as 70 cents an hour.

The men do not have authorization to enter the United States, so they are confined to boats while docked in Honolulu and not eligible for most basic labor protections. The AP report revealed instances of abuse and claims of human trafficking among the fleet.

Under the law, U.S. citizens must make up 75 percent of the crew on most American commercial fishing boats. But in Hawaii the loophole carved out to support one of the state’s biggest industries exempts commercial fishing boat owners from the rules enforced almost everywhere else.

The recently introduced Sustainable Fishing Workforce Protection Act would close the loophole that has allowed the Hawaii fleet to employ the workers.