A 75-foot boat known as The Discovery ran aground in Hawaii after appearing to surf on a wave, with two crew members escaping uninjured. The incident, described by witnesses as the boat being ‘picked up like a toy,’ is under investigation by the Coast Guard. The vessel, used for Atlantis Adventures shuttle services, has been secured for commercial salvage, with no reported pollution.
Video footage shows the vessel, a passenger boat known as The Discovery, appearing to surf on a wave. According to a U.S. Coast Guard press release, the Discovery’s operator reported that two large waves disrupted his course and that he lost propulsion once the vessel went aground. Sector Honolulu command center watchstanders received a report at 8:25 a.m. Saturday that the Discovery ran aground approximately 60 feet outside Kewalo Basin Harbor. The vessel’s captain and one crew member were aboard.
Ramon Brockington, who had been filming body surfers at the time of the incident, described the event as ‘the boat was surfing like a giant surfboard.’ He added that he had never seen a boat of that size and caliber being picked up like a toy and launched across the beach. The Coast Guard noted that a 45-foot Response Boat-Medium was launched from Station Honolulu, but due to shallow water depth and sea state, the boat crew was unable to reach the Discovery. Honolulu Ocean Safety Department jet ski crews arrived and confirmed that the two people aboard were uninjured.
At about 6:25 p.m. Saturday, Cates Marine Services and the tugboat Miki’oi arrived on scene and secured lines to the Discovery. During efforts to tow the vessel off the reef, the cleats failed to hold, requiring the towing operation to halt. The Coast Guard stated that The Discovery, used as a shuttle for Atlantis Adventures, is now ‘secured to the seawall at Kewalo Basin awaiting commercial salvage.’ In a statement, Atlantis Adventures confirmed that ‘there were no passengers aboard the Discovery shuttle boat when it ran aground this morning.’
The company added that ‘the two experienced crewmembers aboard the shuttle boat were not injured,’ and ‘there has been no leaking of fuel or oil from the vessel.’ They are working closely with all government regulatory agencies to have the shuttle boat safely removed from where it was grounded, towed back to its pier location, and thoroughly inspected before it is returned to service. Pacific Environmental Corporation ‘removed 2,275 gallons of diesel fuel and 36 gallons of hydraulic oil’ as well as ‘eight marine batteries,’ according to the Coast Guard. ‘No pollution or sheening has been reported,’ they added.