When Matthew Gore arrived in Wrangell on the evening of Oct. 21, he took his dogs for a walk in the park before getting on his boat, the Andromeda, which he had been storing at the Reliance Float since late June 2021. Immediately, something “felt off.”
As he walked down the stairs, he tripped over objects that he didn’t remember placing there. After inspecting the entire vessel, he discovered that it had been stripped. The generator, charger, batteries, fans, power cable, laminate flooring and more had all been removed and the anchor had been yanked off the rollers. Even his electric piano was gone.
In total, the damage and missing items come to over $10,000.
Gore was “very frustrated” when he learned that the Harbor Department had not been covering its night watch due to a staffing shortage. He called on the borough assembly to increase harbor security at its meeting Oct. 25.
“It seemed that criminals knew there was no harbor coverage,” he said. “I hope this awesome community can protect its reputation as a safe harbor.”
After two employees left unexpectedly last month, the harbor has been understaffed and unable to cover its night shift, explained Port Director Steve Miller. He has since filled both vacant positions, but the harbor’s night and weekend shifts won’t be fully functional until late November, when the new employees have been onboarded and trained.
Security cameras are also on the way, thanks to $830,000 in federal grant money. The project should be out to bid in January 2023 and under construction next summer, Miller said.
The police investigation of the Andromeda theft is ongoing, said Chief Thomas Radke. “We’ve identified a person of interest,” said Radke, “and gotten two search warrants.” Police have also recovered some of Gore’s stolen property.
Gore and his husband lived on the boat in Wrangell for about eight years when Gore was working as the school district’s tech director. The couple moved away, but Gore brought the boat back to Wrangell harbor for maintenance and storage.
After dropping off the Andromeda, Gore experienced serious complications from long-COVID and was unable to return when harbor employees contacted him about picking up his boat from the harbor. “My heart swelled up and I was basically bed-ridden,” he said.
Since Gore could not make the trip to Wrangell, harbor employees moved his boat.
During his remarks to the assembly, Gore suggested that the Harbor Department improve its record-keeping and communication with customers, especially when moving their boats. He believes that harbor employees failed to reconnect the Andromeda’s forward stay, putting his mast as risk of falling. Miller denies this — his harbor operator claims that the forward stay was already detached when the boat was moved.
“In the future, we will definitely be making more phone calls and (sending) more emails to make people aware of exactly what is happening,” said Miller, who expressed sympathy for Gore’s situation.
Miller and the harbor workers have “(tried) to correct anything we could have possibly done wrong” by offering to loan Gore a generator, fuel and pumps to help him restart his boat.
On Friday afternoon, Gore was able to start the boat for the first time since the theft. He described the moment as “the light at the end of the dark tunnel.”
He and Miller have been working together to get the boat out on the water, hopefully by the end of the week.
“We’ve had so much love from the community,” Gore added. “Wrangell never fails to surprise me with their generosity.” He expressed appreciation for the harbor staff’s assistance and for the police department’s responsiveness.
Reader Comments(0)