Workers recover drowned crane from Langley Marina

A sunken crane was lifted from the bottom of South Whidbey Harbor Thursday. Carl Anderson, a hazardous materials specialist with the state Department of Ecology, said no diesel fuel leaked during the operation or through the week.

By Celeste Erickson • August 22, 2013 3:38 pm
A crane that spent more than one week at the bottom of South Whidbey Harbor is loaded onto a barge Thursday.
A crane that spent more than one week at the bottom of South Whidbey Harbor is loaded onto a barge Thursday.

A sunken crane was lifted from the bottom of South Whidbey Harbor Thursday.

Carl Andersen, a hazardous materials specialist with the state Department of Ecology, said no diesel fuel leaked during the operation or through the week.

The crane, owned by Neptune Marine, has been in the water since Aug. 14, when it fell off a barge.

The recovery operation began early Thursday morning with the crane being hoisted to the surface in three parts: the main body, the counterweight and the boom.

A piling was also removed. All parts were out of the water by 10:30 a.m.

Neptune Marine was beginning to install the second piling in the marina expansion project when a mechanical problem caused the barge to take on water and tip. The crane was unsecured and tumbled over the side.