x
Breaking News
More () »

Falls police: Boat illegally dumped on city street

Niagara Falls Public Works and police are scratching their heads a bit, wondering why someone dumped a boat at the end of 15th Street in the Falls.

NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — Here's something you don't see every day, a boat illegally dumped on a city street.

It happened in Niagara Falls and now police there are investigating to find out who did this.

REPORTER: It must be pretty frustrating, disheartening, whatever the emotion is that someone felt like it was okay to do this?

"It is troubling you know because you're putting the onus on the taxpayer," said Niagara Falls Public Works Director John Caso.

Both he and Falls police are scratching their heads a bit, wondering why someone dumped a 28-foot boat at the end of 15th Street in the Falls, a clear violation of the city's illegal dumping ordinance.

"My concern was with that sitting out there, with that making social media and the news and stuff, kids might go inside and play and one may get hurt and we don't want that to happen," Caso said.

15th Street is a dead end -- the boat was left outside several abandoned homes. 

Public Works first heard about the boat two days ago from a person who lives on the street.

REPORTER: Was there anything suspicious found inside the boat?

"No nothing found suspicious inside the boat," Caso said. 

Pay attention to the center of your screen, investigators believe the boat's registration number was removed, making it more difficult to find out who the owner is.  

But they found some old registration boat dock stickers inside -- a potential lead.  

On Thursday morning, the boat was destroyed. 

"We dismantled it on site," Caso said. 

And then, hauled to a landfill. 

This part of 15th Street was cleaned for any fiberglass that fell on the road. 

This is probably the most bizarre illegal dumping case the city has seen in recent years, a problem that has stretched across the Falls, with TV's, furniture and tires dumped in alleys and near train tracks. 

The city has installed more surveillance cameras to crack down on the problem.

"I don't want to say we took care of the problem but I think it's reduced somewhat because there were a few characters caught," Caso said.

Police tell us they are looking at surveillance cameras for any video of that boat being driven to 15th Street.

If caught, that person would not only face a violation but also pay for the city's cleanup costs.

And DPW reminds people in the Falls, there are better options than illegal dumping, Falls residents can get a dump permit for free.

That cost goes up to $25 in May.

Before You Leave, Check This Out