Benjamin Bailey Tugboat Salvage Delayed

Riverside & Pickering Marine crews mobilized quickly on Thursday morning to take advantage of the slack tide at 10:30 a.m. to try and salvage the Benjamin Bailey a day after it sank into the Piscataqua River.

Oil booms were placed around the surface of the water beside the Memorial Bridge construction pier where the Eliot, Maine-based tugboat sank on Wednesday morning after it was overwhelmed by the strong current, took on water and capsized.

According to Archer Western Contractors crews, a large barge crane may be brought in later on Thursday to try and pull the tugboat up. Currently, the tugboat is caught underneath the Memorial Bridge project barge pier.

On Wednedsay at 3 p.m., to the Benjamin Bailey to try and pull it up, but they ran out of time as the slack tide gave way to faster moving currents.

"We do not know why this happened," said Carol Morris, a spokesperson for Archer Western Contractors about why the Benjamin Bailey sank. "It's a tough river."

Morris said that while the incident is similar to what happened with the Miss Stacy tugboat in February, the Benjamin Bailey had an experienced two-man crew on board that knows the river. The Miss Stacy took on water after the currents pinned it against the construction pier, but was towed to safety by one of the Eugenia of Moran Towing.

Morris said that whenever the tugboat is salvaged, the accident will be investigated by the New Hampshire Marine Patrol and the Coast Guard to determine the cause.