January 27, 2017
Division of Aquatic Resources,DAR arrived at Kawaihae Harbor late morning to assess the damages to the coral reef resulting from Hulakai’s double groundings.
The Hulakai’s second grounding caused more damage to live corals than its first grounding. Large areas were leveled to rubble as the sailboat dragged on its anchor and ended on the reef just north of where it was on Sunday, January 22, 2017.
The water visibility was better, so we could see bits and pieces of broken live corals mixed in the rubble.
The groundings added more stress to this reef, which is still recovering from the Global Bleaching Event in 2015, when heavy sediment from the flash floods in August 2015 covered 90%- 95% of it.
DAR Lindsey Kramer is relocating coral broken by Hulukai’s mast
The fact that DAR was notified by me and not by agencies overseeing the Kawaihae Harbor, DOT, and DOBAR three days afterward suggests several things: the reporting of a grounding on the coral reef in a DOT harbor is not important enough to contact DAR, and or DOT officials are not aware of corals in their harbor. Either way, DOT is responsible for better-reporting groundings within their jurisdiction, and Hukakai’s Owner is accountable for the damages.
The mast was removed on the evening of January 28, 2017. I need to see its removal’s impact on the coral.
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