When Ben Doney’s phone rings, he knows he could be thrown into another “race against time,” and that ping can come at any time.
Doney, 39, was getting into bed in Warrenton on Saturday night when such a call came in. Without hesitation, he rushed to the scene north of Sunset Beach where a Dodge Ram pickup truck was sinking into the ocean.
“We have a very short window of opportunity to get these vehicles out when the ocean is coming in around them because the sand starts to bury them, and (can) take them very quickly,” he said. “It’s always a race against time.”
Doney is one of five core volunteers with the Clatsop County Sons of Beaches. The group helps patrol the beaches and assists law enforcement with removing stuck vehicles from areas where driving is allowed, such as the 10-mile stretch north of Gearhart. The summer tide pool season is a busy period for the group, which began about a decade ago.
Doney said anyone who drives on the beach, especially during tide pool season, needs to check the tide tables first, know their vehicle’s capabilities and avoid driving at night or in fog if they’re not familiar with the terrain. A person can be driving on the beach without realizing they’re on a sand bar that abruptly drops off a few feet into the water.
On Saturday night, 17-year-old Craig Heath said he, his girlfriend and a friend wanted to go for a drive on the beach. As the teens were cruising north of Sunset Beach, Heath said he didn’t notice that the pickup, which belongs to his father, was on a sand bar.
“The next thing you know, there was this huge tide pool,” he said. “The front end of the truck just dropped very fast.”
His girlfriend and their friend had to crawl out through the pickup’s sliding door in the back of the cab, while he managed to get out through the driver’s side door.
“I was almost throwing up,” he said. “I tried not to panic.”
They walked until they made it to an area with shallow water. Soon Doney was at the scene, trying to pull the truck out of. It took hours.
He said there were some spots around the truck where the water was only 6 to 8 inches deep, but there were several other spots that were much deeper.
“At one point, I stepped forward,” he said, “and I was up to my chest in water.”
Doney had to call another volunteer to assist him, but that didn’t make the situation smoother because several pieces of towing equipment broke in the process. Eventually, he said, they were able to turn the truck around in the water and pull it out backwards.
“You don’t mess with Mother Nature,” he said, “and the ocean’s fury.”
The volunteers finally recovered the truck around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. A few hours later, at around 9 a.m., Doney’s phone rang again.
Oregon State Police needed his help with another truck stuck in the same place. Doney said he wasn’t aware of the circumstances of how the Ford 150 pickup got stuck. The driver left it in the water while going for help. The volunteers waited for about an hour for the owner to get back with the keys. Then it only took about an hour to pull it out.
On late Monday afternoon, yet another vehicle was submerged in water north of Gearhart. Doney, who owns a computer store in Warrenton, rushed out for the third time in a row. Everyone was safe, including children who were in the Toyota 4Runner.
CJ Heath, the first driver’s father, said it’s great what the group does.
“What they do is fabulous,” he said. “They don’t get enough recognition.”
The group doesn’t charge for its services but does accepts gifts. The group also has a sponsor, Warn Industries, that donates equipment.
“It’s a good feeling to be able to give back to the community,” Doney said. “We are making a difference in helping out there.”
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