A shipwreck along the shores of Ludington State Park has left park workers and volunteers scrambling to get the shore as debris-free as possible before the summer.
The 76 foot pleasure boat ran aground after taking on water on April 15th. After a week the ship collapsed under heavy waves during a storm on April 21st.
Jim Gallie is with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. He said Coast Guard and local staff have been involved in cleanup efforts.
“And then we’ve had a really great number of volunteers from the community. The Friends of Ludington State Park, high school students, and boy scouts have all come out to pick up debris.”
Despite all of the volunteer work Gallie said there’s still a lot left to be done.
“There’s still a lot of the boat that is on the bottom land. Both engines are there. We’re hiring a salvage company to remove that. It’s a very dynamic system out there so it’s very important for our visitors out there to be cautious when they are on the shoreline.”
Gallie said workers could be picking up the debris along the shoreline for years to come.
He said the cost of the cleanup will be somewhere in the six figure range.