Tow lands boatie with sizeable bill

Two men were involved in an ownership dispute over the SV Te Aroha when one of them, Aaron Franklin, took off in the boat on the night of November 29. Photo / Michael Cunningham

The Northland harbourmaster will seek to recover the costs of retrieving a 106-year-old boat under police escort from the Hatea River from the man who took the vessel out.

Two men were involved in an ownership dispute over the SV Te Aroha when one of them, Aaron Franklin, took off in the boat on the night of November 29.

The next day, the deputy harbourmaster and police towed the boat off a sandbank back to its Port Nikau wharf-side mooring, on the grounds it was unseaworthy. It followed an on-board tussle between the vessel's two claimants the night before.

Northland Regional Council harbourmaster Jim Lyle said Mr Franklin could expect a sizeable bill for the recovery - which involved four of his staff and a rescue boat, plus police resources.

Mr Franklin disputed the fact he had "run aground" as originally reported and said he had simply dropped anchor in the river for the night. He also disagreed with the deputy harbourmaster's assertion that repairs he had carried out on the boat were "poor".

Mr Lyle said the semantics of whether the boat was run aground or moored and then sat on the sandbar was "by the by" in terms of safety.

"When we arrived at the scene he was aground. Whether he ran aground or the tide went out is by the by really. He was aground when we got there."

Mr Lyle said there were still "legal wrangles" surrounding the boat.

Port Nikau landlord Tony Davies-Colley said Mr Franklin had since been trespassed from where the boat was moored. "As I see it, he doesn't have any business on my land," he said.

The harbourmaster also issued an official instruction for the boat to not be moved, due to its condition.