On 10/20/2023 at approximately 1000 hours, I contacted V1 Owner and his wife aboard their houseboat V1, docked at Wahweap Marina (WW). V1 Owner reported that upon arriving this morning at approximately 0800 hours, they had observed damage to the stern of their houseboat, which he stated does not have operable engines and remains docked at WW all the time. He stated neither he nor his wife had been aboard since Labor Day (09/04/2023), so concluded that the damage occurred sometime between then and early this morning. He stated he observed white fiberglass chips on the starboard bow of the adjacent houseboat, V2 docked, which suggested to him that houseboat may have been the vessel causing damage.

Contacting the manager of houseboat V2, Owner, I was informed by Owner that houseboat V2 is partner-owned and that one of the partners, V2 Operator, had informed Owner that he had been operating V2 sometime near and after Labor day and had "hit something"; likely the neighboring houseboat, V1.

V1 Owner advised me that insurance information had been obtained from V2 Operator, repair estimates had been received from AZ Marine in the amount of approximately $13,000, and that all appeared in order.

On 11/10/2023 at approximately 1430 hours, I contacted V2 Operator via telephone. V2 Operator confirmed his identity as a partnered owner of houseboat V2 as well as the operator during the collision with houseboat V1. V2 Operator stated throttle failure was the primary cause of the collision and that repair estimates had also been received for V2, in the amount of approximately $9800.
LAKE POWELL
Page, AZ                      