Miami drawbridge crashes down on MY Rockstar

Well, Weiner wasted no time before blasting the city. He devoted five words to "Thank God nobody got hurt" which would and should be anyone's first thought. But the next 14 were "Could have been a tragedy due to the city not maintaining this bridge correctly." While those words may be right considering major maintenance was already scheduled, the reality was that the cause of the accident hasn't yet been determined. Could be many parts of the equipment, the controls, the operator. We don't know yet. I just found it odd. Maybe he's already preparing for litigation. Or just the politician in him coming through.

I go back to the important part, the first five words, "Thank God nobody got hurt."

I just saw a Ch 4 I think it was video, looks like the damage part is all fibreglass so maybe not as bad as first thought just think of it was a the marine equivalent of a crumple zone in a car.

Determining that the bridge hit the boat is simple. Determining why is probably not going to be that difficult. Resolving responsibility and damages is going to be complex and take a very long time.

Well, assuming it takes two years to resolve and then repair the boat, how much value would you estimate it will have lost as a result of the accident? After all, he's trying to sell it. I would think quite a few million dollars. And loss of value isn't insured.

It would be far more likely to go to someone like Rybovich than back to the Trinity yard. They've done a lot of major work on Trinity's.

I find all of this somewhat comical. You pay all this money for insurance.. assuming that someone has your back...but when the flit hit's the shan, everybody runs for cover while pointing fingers at the other guy. Bottom line the Owner, will have to cover the expenses UNTIL they get any compensation. I sincerely doubt that the Owner want's to take to boat off the market for two or three years, until the dust settles. This is clearly the fault of the bridge operator (not the guy in the booth,) but the entity responsible for the operation of the bridge. It's the old "It ain't my Bear, but it's in my trap." I realize that I'm echoing Captholli's opinions, but the "system" has gotten so convoluted, it just want's to make you throw up your hands.

Other yachts have had encounters with draw bridges and then have gone on to new owners and productive lives. Feces occur. It's all fixable. Case in point: http://www.yachtforums.com/index.php?threads/bridge-vs-boat-65-outer-reef-gets-crushed.10864/

What is the point of the various operators only opening one half of a bridge? They both go up and down together, one slightly before the other of course, but both spans are definitely safer, takes slightly more time. I have argued with many an operator that wont open the 2nd span leaving only a few feet of clearance or them thinking our boat got shorter and the bridge got taller and we could fit under a bridge that we have gone thru the last 10 years and it was still too short and we too tall. Or telling us climb the tower in a lightning storm to lower antennas and riggers. Do they get docked pay for the amount of time the bridge is opened? Or bonuses for time closed or reduced cycles on a span? I have yet to see any of them have to hand crank the bridge up, just push a sequence of buttons and make sure no one drives off while it's up.

I understand all of that SeaEric, I have encountered "quick draw" bridge operators. And you're right Feces occurs. But to further my point, I've been known to pull over to the nearest place, tie up and walk to the operators shed, and call his supervisor while having him cornered in his booth to advise the operators hi jinx, and get his word that he was to be fired that day.(He probably wasn't just reassigned another booth.) But I did put the fear of God into him while I was there. I can understand a brake failing. But trying to get money from a Municipal or Government entity is like pulling eye teeth. It's the old saying "you can't fight city hall." I feel for the Owner who has to foot the bill until the "scales of justice" prevail. It's a *****ty system.

Had she not been under tow (which is something I'm still wondering) a quick burst of throttle would have avoided any mishap. I'm sure that's going to be a "legal" point, why a perfectly good boat was under tow...

Do you really think a 161' yacht could have accelerated quickly enough to avoid a falling bridge?

And that is assuming that whoever was on the bridge was able to see up enough to even notice that the slab was coming down. If you look at the surveillance video clip it looks like the bridge was far enough forward / already under the falling span to not even know it was coming.

I doubt it. It is common practice to tow a large yacht in confined quarters because the tow boats are able to more handily maneuver the vessel than the skipper could.

A "quick burst of throttle" ??? This is a big boat. Once you get it going you gotta get it stopped again. While keeping it under control in narrow confines.
Yeahhhh.

Don't forget the hapless tow boat tied to your bow