DELAWARE--Frustration lingers among many in the Delaware surf fishing community after all 17,000 tags completely sold out in record time Wednesday.
Founder of the Delaware Brethren on the Coast, Floyd Morton, said he successfully purchased his 'Surf Fishing Permit' for the year--after waiting for over an hour on his computer.
"Delaware Brethren on the Coast, you know, we want our access," Morton said. "We don't mind paying for any access but we want everybody to be able to access the state parks that they pay for. Our state dollars pay for this."
Frustration surged in person, as hundreds of locals waited in long lines outside state parks, and online as DNREC's system crashed multiple times, logging users out and displaying an error page.
"This was a failure on a lot of parts; DNREC, our legislators, local organizations and businesses not fighting for the surf fishing community, you know the economic viability, I mean we bring in a lot of money to the state," Morton said.
State Sen. Brian Pettyjohn took to Facebook Wednesday evening saying he spoke to numerous members of the Delaware Volunteer Fire Community regarding their difficulties in getting tags--Tags they are entitled to by law, free of charge, if they show up in person.
"A lot of them got turned away or never even thought that the permits were going to run out yesterday, and planned to go today or or some later time," Sen. Pettyjohn said. "Regardless of any cap that might be imposed by DNREC, they are entitled to this pass, so they need to be taken care of. If they are turning in an application that says they meet the criteria for one of the passes, then that should be given to them."
Morton suggested a couple of solutions.
"The first priority I would make, would be to drop the quota system," he said. "Let people buy the tags; you would generate a lot more money. The second priority I would give, is to enforce the Surf Fishing laws in which you imposed."
Delaware State Parks Director Ray Bivens said the limit is there for a reason.
"I think people don't understand why this is a limited resource," Bivens said. "So, we can't sell an unlimited number of these passes because one--there's not queuing space, so think about like around Delaware Seashore, if there is people lined up waiting to get onto the beach, that would stock up traffic on Route One because they're small areas like that, and also at a certain point, there's no room."
Still, Sen. Pettyjohn said there's always a solution, which is why he and other members of the General Assembly will soon meet with DNREC.
"We need a longer-term strategy because we've been selling out sooner and sooner every year...but to sell out in one day and really not give so many people in Delaware that have enjoyed Surf Fishing for decades, for generations not giving them a chance to actually go and get their tags is wrong, and we need to fix that."
In the meantime, DNREC said they are developing a plan for any extra tags they may have after refunds are issued for those who were charged and accounted for multiple times in the system.