However
this was not the end of the saga, on Tuesday, having booked my flight back to
Ireland, leaving San Juan Puerto Rico on Thursday 7th I received a
phone call from the Coast Guard informing me they were going to serve me with a
removal order to be fulfilled within seven days, after which followed a number
of frantic phone calls to underwriters and local representatives, who affirmed
the insurance would pay any costs. The order was finally issued to me on
Wednesday at 3.30pm and stated that all fuel and oil must be removed from the
vessel within ten days, so the boat could stay where she was! More phone calls
and assurances that all was in hand (if the order was not fulfilled I as the
registered owner was, in the eyes of the Coast Guard, liable and would be
billed or fined or both. After an early supper I retired and turned on the TV
which was on the weather channel, and talking about a major storm bringing high
winds and snow to the New York area where planes were already being delayed and
cancelled (my flight plan involved a change of planes in New York). After not
allot of sleep I left the hotel at 1am on Thursday for my 6am flight expecting
the worst, in the event there I encountered no delays and got into Dublin at
5.40 am on Friday 8th although I left Puerto Rico at 21°C
New York at 0° and Dublin at 2°C and raining, however when my suitcase arrived I noticed
there was no lock on it, on opening it I found a card from the US
Transportation Security Administration, informing me that my bag had been
selected for physical inspection, fearing the worst I left a thorough check
until I reached Mourne Park, where I found the only thing missing was an
elderly computer and its battery, which I had used as my course computer on
Snow White, another link with her lost.
