This story was provided by WABE content partner Georgia Recorder.
Five months after crews removed the final section of the Golden Ray car carrier from St. Simons Sound, the owner of a fishing charter company that operates off Georgia’s coast says he is concerned about the long-term fallout following a “nightmare” two years.
Scott Owens, co-owner of The Georgia Fishing Company, said the most expensive shipwreck in U.S. history continues to impact the types of fish swimming in the channel. That has meant fewer booked trips from longtime customers and higher fuel costs to move charter boats away from the site of the September 2019 shipwreck, where oil spilled into the waterway on multiple occasions.
For more than two years, the Golden Ray sat partially submerged in the water, evolving into a monstrosity that Owens says at times resembled a loud, exhaust-blowing diesel truck as salvage crews slowly cut the massive ship into sections. Even though the final piece was removed in October, Owens says he still sees the lingering effects: It has become tough to haul in a redfish or trout in the bay around the wreckage site.
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