FLA. MARINAS WANT STATE, COUNTY HELP:

South Florida marinas along the state’s southeastern Treasure Coast have asked state and county leaders to help them recover from this season’s hurricanes. They would also like state legislators to pass laws to provide them with assistance to help rebuild their facilities and purchase insurance. Marina owners, like homeowners, are having trouble obtaining insurance after the devastating storms. Unlike homeowners, marina owners can’t turn to the state-sponsored insurer, Citizens Property Insurance Corp. The Marine Industries Association of the Treasure Coast is collecting damage estimate information from marinas and boatyards to quantify the $14 billion industry’s economic losses from the hurricanes. Marinas, boatyards and related businesses are a $725 million industry and employ more than 7,000 on the Treasure Coast. Much of the damage was caused by boats left in the water as hurricane winds jostled the vessels against docks or threw them on land. State law does not allow marinas to force boat owners to evacuate their vessels after a hurricane watch or warning has been issued. The idea of the rule is to keep marina owners from making boats set sail when a storm is rolling in.