New Year's Eve cruise: Mystery ship leaves Treasure Coast during weather break

Ed Killer, Treasure Coast Newspapers
Updated ·2 min read

And just like that, she's gone.

The L/B Jill, an industrial work ship moored offshore of Round Island Beach Park for 19 days, finally got underway on Dec. 27. At around 7 a.m., according to TCPalm reader Kay Gibson, the lift boat pulled up its three spuds and began heading south along the beach at its top speed, 6 knots.

By 4 p.m. Wednesday, the L/B Jill reported its position on Vessel Finder as two miles northeast of Palm Beach Inlet and still underway at 4.5 knots. It was the first day where sea conditions were calm enough for the large industrial work vessel to be able to travel.

The offshore supply ship L/B Jill was anchored offshore of Round Island Beach Park from Dec. 8 through Dec. 27, 2023.
The offshore supply ship L/B Jill was anchored offshore of Round Island Beach Park from Dec. 8 through Dec. 27, 2023.

According toSeaCor Marine, the L/B Jill is:

  • Length — 177 feet

  • Width — 135 feet

  • Draft — 10 feet

  • Year built — 2014

  • Depth it can work in — 275 feet

  • Fuel — 74,672 gallons

  • Potable water — 112,012 gallons

  • Water makers — 24,000 gallons per day

  • Holding tank — 81,365 gallons

  • Crew — 12

What is it? Strange ship off Vero Beach is not for windmills, oil drilling or treasure hunting

With a top speed of 6 knots, the L/B Jill can only travel in ideal weather. The crew still has to travel more than 850 miles to reach its home port of Port Fourchon, Louisiana, where it is already overdue.

The crew was due in port Dec. 18. Seas off Palm Beach and Miami are forecast to be light, likely allowing the ship to remain underway for the next few days, according to the National Weather Service Marine Weather Forecast.

The industrial work vessel had been off Long Island, New York, where it worked for over a year to help install a wind farm for a New England-based energy company. It departed New York, where it probably provisioned Nov. 29 on its way to Louisiana, according to VesselFinder.com.

The L/B Jill has worked closely with oil drilling platforms in the northern Gulf of Mexico, too. The crew was confined to the vessel during Christmas because of the bad weather.

Ed Killer covers the outdoors, boating, fishing and the environment for TCPalm. Email him at ed.killer@tcpalm.com.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Mystery ship bids Treasure Coast goodbye prior to New Year's Eve