Officials with the Lake Lanier Association hope another sunken houseboat will be removed from the waters of the lake this coming Tuesday morning.
The sunken vessel, dubbed the "Titanic" houseboat, sank at a private dock several years ago, according to a media release from the Lake Lanier Association. The closest street location is near Lakeview Lane, off of Browns Bridge Road, according to Joanna Cloud, executive director of the association.
Officials with the association and partners involved in its removal, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Hall County, don't know who the boat belongs to.
Despite several attempts by SCUBA divers, no one has been able to locate the boat's registration numbers, according to Cloud.
"The Lake Lanier Association is working with Stephanie Woodard of the Hall County Solicitor General’s office as well as local law enforcement agencies in trying to locate other vessel identification attributes once the vessel is pulled from the water and will pursue enforcement related to violation of local debris ordinances regarding this matter if a vessel owner can be identified," Cloud stated.
In the meantime, experts with Marine Specialties, the contractor for the removal, are making plans.
"They will be using a large crane type piece of equipment to drag the vessel from its current location in the water onto a barge and will then float the barge and the debris to a takeout location," Cloud said.
If successful, the effort will be the third removal of an abandoned steel-hulled houseboat from Lanier in the last 12 months. DNR and Hall County have provided financial support for the operations, according to Cloud.
