Abandoned Boats Collection: Gosport

In between the stormy wind and showers this week our team have been out collecting abandoned boats. The boats in question were rowing boats left on a public pontoon.

The Hardway public pontoon in Gosport has a maximum stay of two hours. If a boat owner leaves their boat there for an extended period of time the council will issue a notice for it to move. Usually the boat owner will get the hint and remove the boat.

Sadly some people choose to abandon their boats there to shift the cost onto the council. Two weeks ago we had a similar removal for a yacht that was abandoned on the pontoon.

A Growing Trend

Local people should be worried about the growing trend of people abandoning boats on public land. It’s then council tax money that has to be used to clear up someone else’s mess. In the current financial climate people having to foot the bill for people abandoning boats isn’t right.

Luckily for us and the council, our yard is perfectly situated next to the water to make this kind of collections of abandoned boats fairly straightforward.

Our only difficulty on the day was staying dry as we were heading straight into a storm cloud with heavy showers. When we made it across to Gosport we quickly secured the boat and waited for the downpour to cease. We then tied the boats together and lowered them into the water.

Making a Break For It

One boat did make a break for it in the middle of the harbour when the tow rope somehow came undone. This is often the case when we are dealing with end of life or abandoned boats, they never come quietly. After an about turn and using a boat hook to retrieve the stray boat we were back on our way.

Thankfully the rain held off for our return to Portsmouth and we tied the rowing boats up alongside another yacht we have waiting for the chop.

Reporting Abandoned Boats

If you know of boats that have been abandoned or you suspect they have been abandoned either get in contact with your local council or alternatively you can call us on 02392 984666.

Alternatively, if you have an end of life boat you can dispose of it responsibly and discretely using our Boat breaking service. Just fill in our Scrap Calculator and our team will do the rest.