ludlow bromley yacht club rebuild

Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club: See ya on land until river operations resume

A pedestrian looks on as emergency personnel converge on the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club after it was struck by a barge last October.

The Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club says on Facebook that it hopes to open across the street at The Lagoon Saloon in Ludlow this summer "with some big changes outside" as it works to resume operations on the Ohio River.

Before a barge slammed into the yacht club last October and the novel coronavirus shuttered much of the country, it had planned to kick off its 2020 season on April 23.

With that not being an option, the club said on Facebook, it has made plans to operate at The Lagoon Saloon at 859 Elm St.

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Once coronavirus-related lockdowns and closures are lifted, yacht club customers will be able to tie up at transit docks at the club and walk across the street to the saloon.

"While it is with a heavy heart and hard to imagine not being able to have the 24th LBYC season this year we look forward to opening the LAGOON as soon as mandates are lifted and seeing everyone with a very large outside area to spread out in," the yacht club said on Facebook.

"We will continue working on getting LBYC made whole and with any luck that mess along with COVID-19 can be put behind us soon.

"You may even see STEAK NIGHT, CHOP NIGHT and RIB NIGHT until we can get back on the river," the club said.

The yacht club’s restaurant and marina were ripped in half by the barge last year.

The U.S. Coast Guard concluded after an investigation that a person on the barge fell asleep at the controls.

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PD: Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club ‘total loss’ after barge crash

LUDLOW, Ky. — Server Kelly Gannon watched as parts of the beloved Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club sank into the Ohio River Wednesday morning.

The Ludlow staple is a total loss after a barge slammed into it at about 6 a.m., according to Chief Scott Smith. One person was aboard the barge when it crashed; no one was injured. Smith said the kitchen was sinking by Wednesday morning. Tables, bars and refrigerators were also starting to go underwater.

Gannon said the Yacht Club is much more than a floating bar and restaurant — to her, it’s home. The joint reminds her of her mother, who passed away last year.

“She loved coming down here and eating with my dad and everything ... so it’s memories, a lot of memories,” Gannon said.

It's not yet clear how the crash happened; the impact nearly split the bar and restaurant in half and sent six boats adrift in the river.

The popular spot bumps to live music and large crowds on the weekends. Smith said he recognizes the crash could have been much worse.

Daylight reveals damage at @Ludlow_Bromley Yacht Club after a barge slammed into the marina earlier this morning. One person was on the barge, and one person was on a boat that was hit, but no one was injured. https://t.co/MkqQDJv77N Photos | @jasmineminortv @WCPO pic.twitter.com/pVJHFLK5qu — Abby Anstead (@AbbyAnstead) October 2, 2019

“A Thursday night, a Friday night, a Saturday night, it would've been — it would’ve been a major problem,” Smith said.

Had the crash happened 45 minutes later, crews would have been opening the restaurant for the day, Smith said.

Gannon said she is devastated that the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club might be gone for good.

"Next couple of weeks, I think they are getting ready to end their season down here, but shouldn’t have to go out like this,” Gannon said.

Bromley Mayor Mike Denham is ready to do whatever he can to keep the business alive, he said Wednesday night after a city council meeting.

His city comprises only a few hundred people and sports no bars of its own. Ludlow is home to a little under 5,000. According to Denham, the Yacht Club connected and bolstered both small communities.

“I hope to God that Steve has enough energy to bring it back,” he said, referring to club owner Steve Gott. “If that don’t come back, we’re losing something precious that either Ludlow or Bromely hasn’t had.”

Gott did not immediately respond to reporters’ requests for comment about the future of his sunken business

The Coast Guard is investigating the crash.

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Ohio River remains closed near Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club after barge crash

LUDLOW, Ky. — Crews were still pulling debris from the Ohio River more than 24 hours after a barge smashed into the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club.

Officials deemed the floating bar and restaurant a total loss after a barge slammed into it at about 6 a.m. Wednesday. Chief Scott Smith said the kitchen was sinking by Wednesday morning. Tables, bars and refrigerators were also starting to go underwater.

As of 3 p.m. Thursday, the river was closed to all traffic between the mile marker 472 and mile marker 476.

The cleanup process is slow, Lt. Jim Brendel said. Crews are trying to remove submerged metal from the middle of the river, which involves divers attaching chains to the debris so they can pull them out of the water.

Once cleanup is complete, the U.S. Coast Guard will scan the bottom of the river. Officials will reopen the river once the Coast Guard determines it is safe.

Brendel said "time is money for towing companies.” Crews are working as quickly as they can, but their primary focus is safety.

Kim Bauer, executive director at Portsmouth-Scioto County Visitors Bureau, said the Ohio River has always been a boon to the economy.

“It’s a waterway that you can transport things all the way from Pittsburgh all the way to New Orleans … you can go right down the Ohio River and hit the Mississippi,” Bauer said. “It’s a wonderful way of transporting products, so it’s very vital and very important to a lot of companies.”

Officials are working to reopen the river as quickly as possible. They had hoped to have it open by Thursday afternoon.

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The iconic Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club is a total loss after a barge slammed into the riverfront bar and restaurant, U.S. Coast Guard officials said Wednesday.

The structure has been a part of the community for decades, a popular summertime spot for thousands across the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area.

Those who live in the area say the Ludlow community is like family and the boats are their homes.

Chris Hollen is a boat owner who used Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club's marina. He found his boat Wednesday morning among the wreckage.

"Right through the middle of it. I mean if somebody was trying to hit this place and do damage to it with a barge, they couldn't have done a better job," Hollen said.

A large portion of the restaurant is slowly sinking and the other half had been dragged upriver early Wednesday.

The tight-knit community gathered to see their home away from home float away.

"Boat hit by barge: We're all family. We spend the whole summer together and I'm not sure what it's going to be like if we can't put this thing back together again. Where we're going to go, what we're going to do," Hollen said.

Although Hollen is going to have to figure out his next steps, he's more worried about the owner, Steve Gott.

"He works on it seven days a week all summer long, and nobody works harder than him. I can't imagine what he's dealing with right now and how he's going to deal with this going forward. Because this place is totaled. There's nothing left," said Hollen.

Hollen said his plans to bring his boat to Florida later Wednesday morning are now squashed.

"You don't sign up for getting hit by a barge, that's for sure. That shouldn't happen I mean crazy things happen with other boaters but these guys are supposed to be pros I can't imagine what the excuse was for something like this but, yeah, my plans for the summer are shot," said Hollen.

Although this situation far from ideal, Hollen said he's thankful it didn't happen on a weekend when the results could have been catastrophic because patrons arrive in the early-morning hours and there are people who sleep in their boat overnight.

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Crews, boat owners assess damage after barge crash

by Tessa DiTirro, WKRC

A popular bar and restaurant on the Ohio River is a total loss. A barge slammed into the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club Wednesday morning. (WKRC)

LUDLOW, Ky. (WKRC) - A popular bar and restaurant on the Ohio River is a total loss. A barge slammed into the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club Wednesday morning .

The Ohio River is still shut down in this area as crews clear out debris. The collision damaged several boats. At the marina, crews have been working at the site all day.

Many people who dock at Ludlow Bromley first heard their boats sunk, so, in a way, they feel lucky to be making repairs. They are more concerned about their friend, Yacht Club owner Steve, his family and employees.

These boaters are a tight group; they are already organizing a fundraiser with some of the regular bands that play at the club. All of the money would help club ownership rebuild.

At the place they have fun and hang out on the weekends, they watched for hours, waiting to get to their boats while their dock sank.

"I see it every day. I see him down here. I know what these guys go through to make it work, and it's heartbreaking to watch it all go sailing down the river here," said Chris Hollon, who lost his entire boat in the barge crash.

Some couldn't get their boats up the river.

"I don't know if the boat is fixable. If it is...I don't know where I'm going to go," said Doug Storey.

"It's totaled...it's going to be way too hard to fix," said Hollon.

Others worked together to find a new dock on the river.

"I actually got on the boat to pull off the flotilla as they called. It wasn't too bad. There were just scrapes and dings, but the dock was rubbing up on our boat, but then everything started up and it moved off just fine, so we were actually very lucky," said Josh Gillenwater, who has some cosmetic boat damage.

"Boats are floating, little bit of damage. The barge company accepted liability. Hopefully it all comes out in the wash," said David Vonborkern, who has some boat damage.

The harbormaster at the Manhattan Marina in Dayton, Kentucky, took in about a dozen of these damaged boats.

"Todd Crawford's great here. He's always taking care of us, and thank God he let us bring them all up here," said Vonborkern.

It's a safe place for their boats, but it's not their second home.

"That place has been there forever. They're just the best people. We love them. We're just really sad," said Leslie Mann.

"I just hope Steve opens up again, rebuilds this place. Otherwise, I may have to just get out of boating altogether," said Storey.

The barge that took out the club was with Florida Marine Transport carrying sand, gravel and rocks to Wheeling, West Virginia.

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The iconic Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club is a total loss after a barge slammed into the riverfront bar and restaurant, U.S. Coast Guard officials said Wednesday.

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Early-morning barge crash destroys Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club, cause remains under investigation

By Mark Hansel NKyTribune managing editor

A barge crash on the Ohio River has destroyed a Northern Kentucky landmark.

A large tow-and-barge combination struck the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club Wednesday morning and the iconic complex, a destination for residents throughout Northern Kentucky and beyond, appears to be a total loss.

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Jim Brendel, detachment supervisor for the Cost Guard Marine Safety Detachment in Cincinnati, provided details of the crash.

“This morning at 6:05, a 1,200 foot tow-and-barge combination on the Ohio River struck the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club Restaurant and Marina, Brendel said. “There was no loss of life or personal injury and no contamination resulted from this incident.

The tow boat, later identified as the Dale Artigue, is a seven-year-old vessel owned by Florida Marine Transporters.

At times people stay on boats at the marina overnight, but Wednesday morning there was only one person on a houseboat, and he managed to escape unscathed.

There was, however, substantial damage to the Yacht Club complex, which almost certainly can’t be repaired.

Following the crash, a four-mile section of the Ohio River was closed to all traffic including recreational vessels.

“We are now transitioning to a salvage operation,” Brendel said. “We will reopen the river as soon as possible, we don’t know when that moment will be.”

An investigation into the incident is being conducted by the U.S. Coast Guard and Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife. There is no timeline, but typically these investigations can take weeks or even months.

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Jim Brendel provides details of a tow-and-barge crash on the Ohio river Wednesday that destroyed the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club.

Brendel was reluctant to provide details while the investigation is still underway, but the visual evidence offered some insights into what happened.

A portion of the complex, which included the kitchen, was crumpled against the shoreline.

Other docks, including the bandstand, bar and dining areas were detached by the barge and carried several yards downriver, where they remained late Wednesday.

That portion of the facility, which was still hung up on the barge, began to drift in the water at one point, but was quickly secured by crews on scene. One section, described by employees as the “cornhole dock,” suffered serious visible damage.

Two employees, who did not want to be named, were observing that portion of the complex from a park across the street from Ludlow High School.

Both said they had been with the Yacht Club for about four years and called it a really fun place to work. One of them said he was scheduled to report to work about half an hour after the crash.

Six boats from the marina were cast adrift by the impact and were moored in the river, near the barges.

“We are asking all boaters who have vessels at this marina to be patient. We cannot let anyone move their boats, until we know it is safe,” Brendel said. “The salvage team is working with nearby marinas to provide storage for boats.”

The Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club is an extremely popular spot and on busy nights caters to capacity crowds.

Ludlow Police Chief Scott Smith said under the circumstances it was a best case scenario, adding that if the crash had happened on a Friday or Saturday night, it could have been much worse.

Brendel said the barge was a normal configuration for the Ohio River, which is three wide by five long. It was carrying mostly rock, sand and gravel, with one styrene barge in the back.

There was no damage to the barges or the towing vessel and Brendel said Coast Guard officials spoke with the captain of the Dale Artigue, but would not elaborate on the conversation.

Several people were observing the wreckage from a walkway at the adjacent Celebrations Riverboats.

Jan Peek, who lives nearby and is a regular at the Yacht Club, said she heard about the crash on the news and came down to check it out. She was already talking about one of her favorite hangouts in the past tense.

“It was just a really fun place,” she said. “It’s such a shame.”

Ed Conrad, a CERT with the Delhi Fire Department who lives in nearby Villa Hills, was awakened with a call shortly after 6 a.m. and was asked to come down and take pictures.

He said he had been to the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club several times and called it an institution.

“Even if they rebuild it, and I don’t know how they can, it’ll never be the same as it was,” Conrad said.

The owner of Celebrations Riverboats said his facility suffered some minor damage, but it appeared to be intact.

The barges were heading northbound on the river, upstream, and something caused it to collide with the restaurant/marina facility.

Brendel wouldn’t say how far off course the barge was except that it was, “outside of the channel, because he hit the restaurant.”

“There could be any number of things that could cause a collision like this, right now it would be premature for me to mention anything,” Brendel said. “Rest assured, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Coast Guard are investigating what caused this accident and then we are also going to be looking at how to prevent it from happening in the future.”

About a year ago, some new buoys were installed on the river near the crash site.

The buoys were placed because a sunken barge shifted and created issues when the water level was low, but Brendel said they are located outside of the navigable channel.

The average depth in what is called the Markland Pool has a minimum navigation depth of 26 feet, at low water. The river level was estimated at between 26.5 and 27 feet at the time of the crash.

“That will be something that we will look at with this investigation, that’s all going to be part of it,” Brendel said. “We will be looking for any video from different facilities, anything the public can provide, we do have a couple of sources of video that will be included in our investigation.

Typically a vessel the size of the one involved in the crash will have several crew members, including a captain, or pilot, engineers and deckhands.

“At any given time, your going to have one person driving the boat and one person on lookout, making sure everything is OK on deck,” Brendel said.

Several agencies responded to the crash scene including fire departments from Ludlow, Cincinnati and Covington, Ludlow Police, Boone County Water Rescue, Kenton County and Campbell County emergency management crews, Kenton County Police, the American Red Cross, Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, Kentucky EPA, SD1 and Duke Energy.

The history of the Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club dates back to the 1950s and 60s. The current owners revived the marina and it is now in its 21st year under their leadership.

The Coast Guard is working with salvage companies in the area to assess what debris is in the middle of the river, so it can be removed and the waterway can be reopened.

“There are multiple options on the table…once wave have a plan that we’ve all agreed upon they we’ll go ahead and execute it,” Brendel said.

The salvage operation was expected to take several hours and the impacted section of the river could reopen today.

The tow boat will remain on the scene until it is released by the Coast Guard.

Contact Mark Hansel at [email protected]

One thought on “ Early-morning barge crash destroys Ludlow Bromley Yacht Club, cause remains under investigation ”

Can’t find good help nowadays. Everyone is too soft to work at all or are all drugged up. Im surprised they can find enough people to even float a barge in todays world. a plumber is going to get better pay soon more than doctors, note that down.