Lawsuit over grounded yacht seeks $2 million in damages | News, Sports, Jobs
The luxury yacht Nakoa is seen grounded at Honolua Bay on Feb. 24. The people who sold the yacht to Noelani Yacht Charters and Jim Jones are now suing for damages after the yacht spent nearly two weeks grounded on the reef before it was towed out to sea and eventually scuttled. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo
The trust that sold the 94-foot luxury yacht to Noelani Yacht Charters and owner Jim Jones is seeking more than $2 million in damages after the boat ran aground during a family sail along the West Maui coast and had to be towed from the reef and scuttled at sea.
Kevin and Kimberly Albert, trustees of the Albert Revocable Trust in New Mexico, say that Jones and the company purchased the yacht for $1.45 million in December and used the commercial vessel “in a grossly negligent manner” for a personal trip without seeking the approval of the trust, according to a lawsuit filed Monday in federal court against Jones, the company and the captain.
The Alberts are seeking at least $1.45 million for the loss of the yacht, which was supposed to be paid off over the course of 15 years, as well as at least $500,000 for the salvage work and at least $500,000 for environmental damages.
Jones and his wife, along with four juvenile family members or friends, a captain, first mate and a crew member, began their trip Feb. 17 when the yacht, Nakoa, was moored at Lahaina Roads, according to the lawsuit. They traveled along the coast to places like Black Rock, Kapalua Bay and Honolua Bay before mooring overnight on Feb. 18 and 19 in Honolua Bay, where mooring is limited to two and a half hours per vessel per day and overnight mooring is prohibited.
The lawsuit says neither the captain nor Jones took the standard precaution of setting a manned mooring or anchor watch but instead relied solely on a digital anchor alarm.
The website of Noelani Yacht Charters, which once offered luxury yacht packages, reports that the company is no longer in business. This screenshot was taken Tuesday. Screenshot of Noelani Yacht Charters website
At about 5:20 a.m. on Feb. 20, Jones heard a notification from the anchor alarm around the same time as the captain noticed that the Nakoa was adrift. They started up the engines and tried to maneuver the boat but ultimately ran aground.
Efforts to salvage the yacht took nearly two weeks as federal and state officials worked to remove fuel, batteries and other hazardous materials. Hampered by poor weather and failed rigging, private contractors managed to free the yacht after multiple tries and towed it out to sea, where it sank in about 800 feet of water on March 5, according to the state Department of Land and Natural Resources.
DLNR has reported the salvage cost alone was $460,000 and planned to bill Jones. The department is also mulling fines after discovering that the yacht damaged corals and live rock across more than 19,000 square feet.
After the grounding, Jones notified the trust that he had taken the yacht out for personal use, the lawsuit says.
The trust is alleging that Jones and Noelani Yacht Charters breached the purchase agreement from December that outlined operations, crew requirements and restricted uses, and held the buyer responsible for any risk of loss or damage.
The trust raised complaints about Jones and the company “failing to notify the Trust about personal use of the Vessel, failing to obtain permission to use the Vessel for personal use, substituting an unapproved and unqualified captain to operate the Vessel and failing to adequately secure the financial interests of the yacht charter operations to adequately protect the interest of the Trust.”
According to the lawsuit, the captain of the Nakoa during the trip was licensed but was not the listed and approved captain on the yacht’ insurance policy.
Noelani Yacht Charters, which prior to the grounding had offered high-end luxury yacht vacation packages based out of Oahu, is no longer in business, according to its website.
Jones could not be immediately reached via email on Tuesday evening.
The company told The Maui News in February that “this was a family retreat with an unfortunate ending.”
* Colleen Uechi can be reached at .
- The website of Noelani Yacht Charters, which once offered luxury yacht packages, reports that the company is no longer in business. This screenshot was taken Tuesday. Screenshot of Noelani Yacht Charters website
- The luxury yacht Nakoa is seen grounded at Honolua Bay on Feb. 24. The people who sold the yacht to Noelani Yacht Charters and Jim Jones are now suing for damages after the yacht spent nearly two weeks grounded on the reef before it was towed out to sea and eventually scuttled. The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo
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