The Newport Princess, a 77-year-old, 61.5-foot-long Mississippi-style paddleboat that toured Newport Harbor, has sunk about a mile off of the coast of Long Beach.

The vessel, which had been moored for most of 2021 next to the oil platform island White, had no one aboard and no injuries were reported as it sank.

According to Petty Officer Aidan Coomey, U.S. Coast Guard officials marked area with buoys to keep other ships from running into the submerged vessel. They have been in contact with its owner, who is responsible for getting it out of the water.

“Even though the vessel has the capacity to hold 750 gallons of fuel, reports state that there were less than 10 gallons aboard,” Coomey said. “So the environmental impact isn’t too severe.”

Piles of lifejackets with the words “Newport Princess” printed on them, chairs and other debris that had been aboard the vessel littered the shoreline after the boat sank, Long Beach Marine Safety Chief Gonzalo Medina said.

The Newport Princess remained partially submerged Wednesday while arrangements are being made with a salvage company to retrieve and demolish it. Officials expect that process to begin by the end of this week, and it could cost the boat’s owner between $30,000 and $50,000, Medina said.

The Coast Guard and Long Beach’s Marine Safety Bureau were working to determine what caused the Newport Princess to go under. It was not immediately clear if it had anything to do with the storm that passed through Southern California on Tuesday, although officials said that was unlikely.

Video produced by Jesse Lopez,
Grunion Gazette with reporting by By Eric Lucas, Orange County Register.