Hundreds of sunken and grounded yachts are being salvaged in a huge clean-up operation following the landing of Hurricane Ike in Galveston, Texas.
Fisherman Cliff Rodrigue's offshore fishing boat is still tied to the same dock where he left it before Hurricane Ike roared ashore. But now, the dock and Rodrigue's boat, Hot Sauce, are resting on the shoulder of Interstate 45, yards away from the marina.
Across the island, salvage crews are trying to move hundreds of boats from their new resting places, where they were pushed inland by Ike's tidal surge. There are boats in roads, in yards, in parking lots, in medians and on the base of the causeway. Working to clear the paths for rescue crews, debris removal crews unceremoniously shoved landlocked boats, worth more money than some homes, into piles along roads.
Boat salvage crews, when they were finally allowed back on the island, hastily recovered what was left. Boats docked at Payco Marina in Galveston washed ashore at the base of the causeway, dragging with them pieces of pilings and piers. State authorities told salvage crews they had until Monday to clear the wreckage before they demolished what was left, said Chris Cotter of Land and Sea Services, a boat salvage company based in La Marque.
Hundreds of sunken and grounded yachts are being salvaged in a huge clean-up operation following the landing of Hurricane Ike in Galveston, Texas.
