PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The SS United States is about 1,800 nautical miles closer to its final destination, Okaloosa County, Florida, announced Monday. It took 12 days to move the massive ocean liner from its South Philadelphia mooring in the Delaware River to the port of Mobile, Alabama.
For the next six months to a year, the ship will be rendered environmentally safe for submersion into the Gulf of Mexico about 20 miles off the coast of Destin-Fort Walton Beach, Florida, where it will become an artificial reef. Crews will remove all non-metal items, wiring and traces of fuel. Then workers will cut holes in strategic locations of the hull to ensure she lands upright.
The SSUS in its next life is expected to be a regional moneymaker, according to Destin-Fort Walton Beach. As a reef, the ship will benefit the local and regional fishing industry as a habitat for a variety of marine species, including grouper, snapper, mackerel and tuna. And the sunken ship, more than 100 feet longer than the Titanic, is expected to comebe a worldwide destination for divers of all skill levels, benefitting tourism.