Video captures Eastport pier collapse

EASTPORT — Several boats were damaged and one person suffered a broken leg when a major section of the Eastport pier collapsed.

The collapse of the breakwater in the inner harbor was reported shortly after 2 a.m. on Thursday, the Coast Guard said.

A fishing boat was damaged and the Eastport pilot boat sank. An unattended pickup truck also slid into the water.

Eastport Port Authority director Chris Gardner told WABI-TV that about 150 feet of pilings gave way. Officials are investigating but Gardner said it appeared underwater metal boxes that hold the pilings in place had eroded. The collapsed portion of the pier was an older section, with an addition completed in the 1980s which was not affected, the Coast Guard said.

Following the collapse, an oily sheen could be seen on the water’s surface, the Coast Guard said.

The Eastport Port Authority posted this message to its Facebook page: “The Eastport Breakwater has encountered major damage early this morning and we are asking all boat owners to please remove their boats as soon as possible.”

Pat Donahue told WQDY-FM he was asleep on his boat but awoke to the sound of “crumbling.” He said debris fell on the vessel.

Gardner said the breakwater was built in the 1960s and U.S. Sen. Susan Collins had recently secured federal funds to replace it.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

This story will be updated.

David Hench can be contacted at 791-6327 or at:

[email protected]

Twitter: @Mainehenchman

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