Hanlan's Point Abandoned Boat Owner Comes Forward

SEE OUR PREVIOUS ARTICLE FOR REFERENCE HERE https://www.thleaflet.com/post/abandoned-boat-raises-questions-at-hanlan-s-point

The abandoned Hanlan's boat rests beached on the sandy shore against a backdrop of urban buildings.

From the Hanlan's Point Abandoned Boat Owner: Leeandro Glen Ali

Below is from a series of emails we received from the owner of the Hanlan's Point abandoned boat. In November a boat washed up at Hanlan's Point Beach, and has sparked a lot of curiosity over the last few months. The boat has been removed. See our full article about the boat at the link above.

"Hi! I am the owner of the boat. Do you know where it went? It was not abandoned on purpose. The engine stalled a couple of times and the rough waves pushed me onto the shallow point. Trying to get the motor started or deploying my anchor was not happening under such harsh conditions that night. The original plan was to do a lap around Toronto Island. This was the 4th time being out with the vessel after doing repairs and trying to troubleshoot future mechanical issues.

There was a small fire that night in the engine bay. Within 4 hours I was pushed up onto the beach. I tried to get unstuck the next morning but then there was a bigger fire in the engine bay, which I managed to put out. The Coast Guard and marine police showed up after trying to help out. I originally was living on the boat. Being stuck on that side of the island, walking 1 & 1/2 hours one way to get the ferry at Ward’s Island restricted me a lot from getting all my belongings off the boat. The weather played a big part — some of the paths do not get cleared, making it impossible at times to get through with my carts or to retrieve any of my items.

The last time I was able to make it to the boat was a month ago, weather permitting. I was able to get some more of my stuff, but then I got stuck on the mainland in a homeless situation and have been trying to make it back to get the remainder of my stuff. I have been trying to contact the Coast Guard. Unfortunately, my last phone was damaged by water and I lost all my contacts. I had the info that directed me to the right extension, but I’ve been on hold forever trying to speak to the right person.

Overall, my experience with individuals coming to my aid has been crappy. The Coast Guard and police tried to help but can only do so much. I had a lot of financial issues, and a couple of nice workers from the City of Toronto helped out with me getting back to the island to grab some stuff, even leaving a washroom on that side of the island open for me to use with heat. The other 95% of City of Toronto employees — starting from Jack Layton Ferry Terminal — actually refused to let me on the ferry with no money, except for that one very nice employee who did it two times and let me on for free.

So, because of some help I received, I was able to salvage some of my life off the wrecked ship, while others actually helped me sink deeper into a homeless situation, losing my possessions. Oh yeah — so I have videos of me on the boat the night it happened, the whole catastrophe. My friend edited the video for me and posted it on TikTok the next week. It was quite the adventure.

The video is under the name THE DIABLO PIRATE. There is more to the story, like where I got the boat from, the actual owners. I have pics of the boat when I first got it and such I have to dig up and can send it to you. I can send you more later today to add to the story. Things like the engine stall and the fire I couldn’t record because I had to drop my phone to deal with those issues, so they got edited out by my friend."