The family riding a 22-foot recreational motorboat that hit a ledge and sank off North Haven on Sunday is thankful that one of its members thought to bring an inflatable paddleboard on the excursion.
Of the 11 people on board the boat, five were able to get back to shore using the paddleboard, which one relative ferried back and forth twice, according to Lily Goodale, a seasonal resident of Lincolnville whose husband, Nathaniel Goodale, owns the boat. The other six passengers, along with five dogs who were on board, managed to swim to the island, which officials say was less than 100 feet away from where the damaged vessel was taking on water.
“We are all devastated; however, we are so grateful for the circumstances. Thank God my son insisted on bringing his blow up paddleboard,” Lily Goodale said in an email. “Thank God my husband is such a great captain that he could navigate a propellerless boat close enough to shore to drop anchor and save us all.”
The family had been planning the boating trip for weeks. The passengers included the pair’s four adult children, their children’s three partners and their three grandchildren, who ranged in age from 14 months to 12 years old.
The boat, a Bertram 31, was south of North Haven, cruising at a leisurely pace near Stand-In Point and had nearly completed a required turn when it dragged along the rock ledge that tore a hole measuring 18 inches across in its port side. The boat then started to take on water and sink.
The Goodales’ oldest daughter, Anna, called 911 immediately. Wes Walker, one of the childrens’ partners, was able to inflate the paddleboard at what Lily Goodale said was “record speed.”
The couple’s son who had brought the paddleboard then used it to transport his wife and 14-month old child to shore before returning for his mother and father.
One passenger, aged 26, was cut by barnacles trying to get out of the water once she reached the shore, said her mother. She was the only passenger to suffer an injury, and was treated by local rescuers on North Haven who applied antiseptic and gauze.
Rescuers then transported them and the five dogs to the North Haven ferry terminal to be brought back to the mainland.
As of Monday morning, the boat had additional holes from sitting on a ledge all night, said Dallas Fields of Fields Dive Service, who worked with state environmental officials to plug its fuel tank vents and tow it eight miles across the bay to Rockland.
The Goodales had bought the well-preserved vintage vessel in 2003 and now plan to repair it, according to Lily Goodale. She said that they had been using a brand-new Garmin radar device and that the waterway had looked clear before they hit the ledge.
The passengers salvaged all of the electronics and several boat parts, she noted.
Nathaniel Goodale is a lifelong captain, his wife said, having “run on these waters since he was a child.” The Goodales primarily live in Jupiter, Florida.
