The director of the department of environmental management shall, immediately on receiving information of any shipwreck or of the finding of any shipwrecked goods or property of any kind in value to the amount of twenty dollars ($20.00) or more upon the shore of Block Island, repair to the place where the property may be found, and in case the property shall not be in the custody of any owner or agent, the director shall take charge thereof and shall preserve and secure the property for the owner.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 46-10-15