Sailboat towed from beach [corrected]
A 36-foot Catalina sailboat that ran aground off near south Main Beach Sunday afternoon has been towed from the shoreline by a tractor, according to Laguna Beach police.
“Lifeguards eventually worked with Laguna Beach public works officials to get the boat moved to the north end of Main Beach via tractor,” Capt. Jason Kravetz wrote in an email.
The operator of the boat, 47-year-old Stephen Fryer of San Diego was arrested on suspicion of piloting a vessel while intoxicated, according to police.
FOR THE RECORD:
The story orginally said a 30-foot boat ran aground off Cleo Street Beach, but the boat is actually 36 feet and ran aground between the north end of Sleepy Hollow and south end of Main Beach.
He no longer wants the boat “because of all the damage it has sustained,” Sgt. Louise Callus said in an email.
The keel is heavily damaged along the underside of the boat, the result of when it grounded as well as waves hitting it all night, she said.
Crews had to drain the gasoline out of the boat so a tractor could drag it to Main Beach, said Callus, who added that “whatever can be salvaged will be taken off the boat.”
Local police, fire and lifeguards first responded to a call about a sailboat that was aground with its starboard side in the surf zone and its engine running at 3:38 p.m. Sunday, Callus said.
The Orange County Harbor Patrol and U.S. Coast Guard also were called and responded.
Both Laguna Beach police and harbor patrol said Fryer refused to initially get off the boat.
“A man was seen on the stern of the boat by bystanders and then entering the cabin,” Callus said. “Lifeguards boarded the boat, and when they contacted the subject, they believed him to be intoxicated. He would not comply with lifeguard’s directions to exit the vessel. He was in a confined area on a slippery deck and they were unable to forcibly remove him.”
Lifeguards were successful with a second attempt to remove him.
Fryer was uninjured and released from custody on his own recognizance with a later court date, Callus said.
Twitter: @agomezberman