Man sold boat in 2019 — Hurricane Helene washed it ashore 5 years later. He was told, remove it or face fines. Where? Where else?

In 2019, Pinellas County resident John Fleming sold his 31-foot sailboat, Shenanigans.

But when Hurricane Helene came along in 2024, it washed Fleming's old boat ashore onto the Dunedin Causeway.

When Fleming received a code enforcement citation, the first thing he tried to do was explain that he no longer owned the boat in question. But following that, he received a notice reiterating that the boat needed to be moved, and if not, Fleming could be on the hook for fines of up to $1,000 per day.

Fleming tried to speak to a person at the county and initially hit a dead end trying to get through to the officer who issued the violation.

"I couldn't get through to him. I left him messages. I even called his supervisor," he said.

When the officer finally got back to him, he informed Fleming that he needed to remove the boat or otherwise the county would take care of it and would pass the cost on to him.

"And, if I like, I can go after the owner civilly to recover all those costs," Fleming explained.

But that sounded like a hassle he didn't want to deal with. So, Fleming contacted Channel 8 consumer reporter Shannon Behnken, who then reached out to county officials.

More:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/florida-man-sold-boat-2019-114400646.html

Shenanigans. Good name for something in FLORIDA.