For the Kauaʻi Sea Scouts, their new 63-foot yacht, Sun Seeker, was supposed to mark the beginning of a new chapter.
Instead, just weeks after the scouts finished a two-week, five-island summer voyage from Kauaʻi to Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānai and Maui aboard the Sun Seeker, they learned their new vessel had sunk in Nawiliwili Harbor as Hurricane Lowell battered the island.
Late on Labor Day, Hurricane Lowell brought winds of up to 87 miles per hour that swept through the harbor.
The yacht had been donated to the nonprofit and was expected to give generations of Kauaʻi youth a chance to learn seamanship and experience extended voyages.
“It was heartbreaking,” Guilligan Mate Tom Worthen told Kauaʻi Now.
“We were just finishing up our three-day Labor Day weekend on the boat with the scouts, leaving the morning the Hurricane hit,” Worthen said.
“We doubled the lines holding the boat down, secured everything we could by tying it down, closed all the portholes, put out extra fenders (large inflated rubber cushions that go between a boat and the dock and other boats), and hoped for the best.”
A scout’s mother was at the harbor the following morning and was among the first to discover the yacht underwater. She sent a photograph to the Sea Scouts that devastated the crew.
“We were planning to have this dream boat to serve generations of Kauai youth,” Worthen said. “This boat had everything we needed and everything we could dream about.
“The vessel was equipped with three fridges, a washer and dryer, AC, could sleep around 20 kids, and had so many things that it was perfect for our crew and was more luxurious than we ever anticipated. But now it is gone.”
The storm surge from Lowell was so powerful that it broke the port-side cleat on the dock, allowing the boat to move backward and slam its stern into the dock.
This “created a hole in the hull,” Worthen said. “We have bilge pumps, but they can’t keep up with a hole that big, and she filled with water and sank in our slip at the harbor.”
For the young sailors, it was especially crushing.
“Having this last boat donated was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Worthen said. “At first, it was not really believable that it happened, and then tears.”
Now the scouts and the crew are left to figure out what comes next.
The Sun Seeker remains at Nawiliwili Harbor while the Sea Scouts work with their insurance company to have the vessel raised.
Once it is out of the water, the Sea Scouts plan to salvage whatever equipment and other items remain usable. Depending on the condition of the yacht, it could eventually be towed to Oʻahu and dismantled.
The crew also discovered that someone had stolen chairs from the damaged yacht.
“There were two large leather captain’s chairs that were really nice, and someone took the time to go onto the boat and unbolt them and carry them off,” Worthen said. “Stealing from a non-profit when we are already down is also heartbreaking.”
He added: “If we can use any insurance money and have some donations, we hope to acquire a newer, larger boat to replace the older, smaller one we were trying to sell, but will keep until a better option arrives.”
The Kauaʻi Sea Scouts are raising funds to rebuild their program and resume operations. (Photo Credit: Kauaʻi Sea Scouts)- Kumu Sabra Kauka, aboard the new Sun Seeker vessel, led a special blessing on Aug. 29, 2025, at the Nawiliwili Small Boat Harbor, where the community gathered. (Photo Credit: The Kaua’i Sea Scouts)
As a nonprofit, the Sea Scouts explained that the cost of insurance is one of the challenges. Worthen said: “It is about twice as old, requires more maintenance, and can accommodate roughly half the number of crew members.”
The crew hopes a combination of insurance proceeds and community donations will eventually make it possible to acquire another larger boat.
For now, Worthen said they know “we can work hard and keep the adventure going.”
Donors interested in making a tax-deductible contribution to help rebuild the Kauaʻi Sea Scouts program and resume operations can click here.
