Philadelphia (CNN) — The SS United States is almost on the transfer — once more.
After months of delays, the primary leg of the ship’s journey to her new underwater dwelling off the coast of Florida will admittedly be fairly quick — from Pier 82 to Pier 80 in Philadelphia.
But when all goes to plan, the majestic ship will embark on its journey to Florida on Saturday after some setbacks that delayed its unique departure late final 12 months.
“Operations to maneuver America’s Flagship will start with a lateral transfer,” says an announcement launched Wednesday from the ship’s new proprietor, Florida’s Okaloosa County, referring to the brand new pier. That transfer was outlooked for Thursday morning however is now anticipated to occur on Thursday night, in keeping with CNN affiliate WPVI.
“The SSUS will [then] depart Philadelphia on Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025 at 4 a.m.,” says Okaloosa County.
The “Huge U” will then take two weeks to journey down the East Coast and across the southern tip of Florida earlier than stopping in Cellular, Alabama, for closing preparations to be sunk off the coast of Destin-Fort Walton Seashore off the Florida Panhandle.
The American icon — which set the transatlantic velocity report in 1952 and is almost as massive because the Chrysler Constructing — will then change into a haven for fish and divers because the “World’s Largest Synthetic Reef.”
However that is “a tentative schedule,” the assertion cautioned. “Dates, occasions and different logistics are topic to alter.”
If Saturday presents visibility challenges, the transfer would happen on the subsequent low tide, the assertion says.
A sequence of delays
Observers of the SS United States’ transfer have change into accustomed to modifications of plans.
Final fall, unhealthy climate within the Gulf of Mexico initially delayed the journey south. The most important hurdle got here within the type of a “Captain of the Port Order” from the Coast Guard.
The order obtained by CNN mentioned the ship “could not have appropriate stability for the supposed transit and presents a hazardous situation to the port or waterway.” The order mentioned Okaloosa County wanted to revive the ship’s structural integrity earlier than it might be allowed to depart.
After the Coast Guard informed CNN final month “constructive progress” had been made on this entrance, on Wednesday the county mentioned it had “accomplished the mandatory security necessities by native, state and federal companies to maneuver the SS United States.”
The ship’s earlier proprietor, the SS United States Conservancy confirmed the transfer as effectively Wednesday, noting the county had completed “complete due diligence,” and “intensive testing” to organize for this journey.
As soon as the SS United States docks in Alabama, contractors will “take away hazardous materials, together with non-metal elements and gasoline to make sure this deployment is clear and never dangerous to the atmosphere it goals to learn,” in keeping with Okaloosa County.
Officers mentioned the preparation course of will take about 12 months.
A ship of lore and historical past
For greater than 70 years, the SS United States has captivated the hearts and minds of Individuals for her distinguished magnificence, her 1952 transatlantic velocity report and for carrying a few of the world’s most treasured cargo, together with a number of US presidents and Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa.”
She was withdrawn from service in 1969. The admiration by no means ceased.
Whereas many longtime followers of the ship have mourned the choice to sink it, the SS United States Conservancy and Okaloosa County say this was the one choice to forestall the SS United States from being scrapped after it was evicted from its longtime Philadelphia pier.
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