A portion of a derelict boat towed into Newport, Oregon on April 9, 2015 was disposed of on Monday, April 13. Please refer to previous releases (http://tinyurl.com/derelictboat1 and http://tinyurl.com/derelictboat2) for details on the original sighting and recovery. + After being towed to the South Beach Marina in Newport on April 9, the boat was re-towed to Riverbend Marine Services on the Yaquina River upstream from the harbor April 10. + While still moored at the South Beach Marina, a group of yellowtail jacks and banded knifejaw fishes were removed from the boat’s holding tanks and are in quarantine at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. Preliminary examination indicates they are a variety of yellowtail jack from the western Pacific. A final determination about the origin of the yellowtail jacks will come through genetic testing. The knifejaw is also a species found in the waters around Japan, but not in the eastern Pacific near Oregon. After the quarantine period is over, the Oregon Coast Aquarium will move the fish to the Open Sea exhibit in Passages of the Deep for public display. + The debris was examined by Radiation Protection Services, part of the Public Health Division of the Oregon Department of Health. The survey did not find any signs of radiation above the normal, background level. + After emptying the holding tanks of water, the wreck was hoisted out of the river and most of the attached plants and animals were scraped off. Researchers with Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center collected additional samples of wood, plants, and animals for study. + This is the bow (front) section of a larger boat. + The entire object was taken in one piece to a landfill on Monday, April 13, and weighed 8,550 pounds.
