The Norma-K II has been mostly retired for the past six or seven years, and Keller was searching for a buyer for the historic boat.Keller said the 51-year-old Norma-K II was built in Atlantic City and cost $82,000 at the time when loaded with equipment, equivalent then to $618,000 in today’s dollars.“I watched every part of that boat being built,” she recalled. “She shouldn’t have went down.”Keller suspected the ice in the river combined with an unusually low tide may have caused some damage to the boat, which resulted in its sinking. The challenge Sunday morning was to find a place to store the Norma-K- II until it could be repaired. Keller said most boat yards are full this time of year, and many marinas cannot be reached because of river ice.Eric Gunthner, a deck hand who worked on both the Norma-K II and Miss Point Pleasant II, discovered the sunken boat Sunday morning.Though the Miss Point Pleasant was dismantled in November because it could not be salvaged, Keller and Gunthner hope there will be a different future for the Norma-K II.“I think there is a chance we can save it,” said Gunthner. “Hopefully, there will be a good outcome.”“There’s a lot of life left in her,” said Keller. “I don’t want to see the K II go down.”
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