WASHINGTON, N.C. (AP) -- A builder of fast and expensive powerboats has filed for bankruptcy protection in North Carolina.
Multiple media outlets reported that Fountain Powerboat Industries Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday.
The Washington, N.C.-based company reported owing nearly $20 million to Regions Bank, its largest creditor. Company founder and CEO Reggie Fountain Jr. says survival depends on attracting new investors and raising money by selling assets.
Fountain says the company's Beaufort County work force will be cut to about a dozen workers. The boat-builder once employed more than 450. Last summer, the company was planning to add 250 jobs with the help of a state grant of as much as $12 million over five years.
