On Saturday, December 27, 2008, at 06:22AM, "Patrick Roberts" <proberts58@me.com> wrote:
Dear Jim & Judy Montgomery,
We have been chartering "Eclectic Lady" since Dec 22nd, and we stayed in Hope Town the first 2 nights to see the island and allow the weather to calm. Shortly after our departure, on Christmas Eve we had engine trouble, and the sequence of events, and our response was discribed to our only email contact, Vicky, below. The boat is still at anchor, disabled and without power, in Fisher's Bay, Guana Cay. We have taken a guest room at Grabber's until we can resolve this problem. We have repeatedly attempted to contact ABC by VHF Ch 16, but without success because of the holidays. Since yesterday we have had no power for the radio on the boat, and the marina has been kind enough to attempt calls for us, and our attempts at using the local telephone has only returned a busy signal.
Since we have only two days remaining of our charter, we assume that there will be no solution to continue the charter. Repairs on "Eclectic Lady" would have to be extensive to restore my confidence in her as she has proven to be in disrepair and unsafe after we took her out (unreliable engine, main boom catches on back stays, head intake nonfunctional, etc). I am convinced that taking here into a confined marina such as Hope Town without an overhaul of the engine (or a tow) would likely result in damage to property and/or personal injury. We are now expecting return to Marsh Harbor by ferry from Guana Cay and recover a portion of our payment for the charter. Please respond as we have had no contact with your company in 3 days. Also, please also inform your Hope Town base of our situation. We will now try again at the marina to make contact with your Hope Town base.
Regards, Patrick