Captain Bill Wechter, a commercial fisherman, has started the towing service for boaters and the business is called Vessel Assist Newport, which provides 24-hour-a-day assistance, including tows back to a marina or launch ramp, battery jump starts, fuel drop offs, or ungrounding services. It is said that it is the second vessel assist port on the Yaquina River and the fifth in Oregon.
Wechter, who holds a U.S. Coast Guard 100-ton captain’s license, has equipped the towing port with two response boats – a 44-foot, former Coast Guard motor lifeboat and a 25-foot Tolly Craft. According to Wechter as the temperatures now on the rise, trailer boaters have returned to the region’s great fishing grounds. He also said that he expects to see a fair amount of calls for assistance this summer due to mechanical breakdowns and fuel problems.
According to him the towing service on Yaquina Bay is something new and is expected to draw attention as well as business. The summer is said to be good time for such service and so Wechter is optimist about his new service and is looking forward for good assistance call from the boaters.
