Last update: Nov. 12, 8:45 p.m.
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The final voyage of the SS United States has been delayed. After being docked in South Philadelphia for nearly three decades, the historic vessel was scheduled to begin its slow tow south at the end of this week — but foul weather has thrown a wrench in the works.
Officials with Okaloosa County, Florida, say they want to ensure logistical details and procedures are ideal for the move and, on Tuesday, announced the voyage would be delayed while they monitor a tropical disturbance that could affect the ability to safely deliver the ship to its next destination -– Mobile, Alabama — where it will be stripped of hazardous materials.
Ultimately, the ship will be sunk about 20 miles south of Florida’s Panhandle region, where it will become the world’s largest artificial reef.
A new date for the ocean liner's departure down the Delaware River has not yet been set.
Original article follows:
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Richard Jenkins, 52, of Massachusetts, remembers when the SS United States was in Newport News, Virginia.
“I was a kid growing up in Minnesota, we were on a family road trip out to the east coast and we went out on a tour boat down in Newport News — we got right up next to it,” said Jenkins, one of many who came to Pier 82 Monday to say their final goodbye to the ocean liner. He made a special stop on his way home from visiting his dad in DC just to see it.
He said back then, the 1,000-foot ship had a lot more paint on it.
“I remember the tour boat captain telling us he could fit the tour boat inside one of those smoke stacks without touching the sides. And I was looking up at that thing, I was like 7 years old at the time, and I was like wow this is so cool! So this thing has kind of been a part of my life. This is probably the last time I’ll be seeing it.”
The ship has been docked in South Philadelphia for nearly 30 years. Later this week, it will be towed to Mobile, Alabama, where it will be prepared to become the world's largest artificial reef before being sunk in the Florida panhandle.
Alex Fogg is the Natural Resources chief for Destin-Fort Walton Beach in Okaloosa County, which purchased the ocean liner in October.
He says the ship will be repositioned at the pier during high tide on Thursday, and Friday morning during low tide, it will be pulled by a tug boat along the Delaware River, under three bridges, and into the Atlantic Ocean to Mobile, where hazardous materials will be removed over the next year.
"There will be some sentiment that will have to be moved by the vessel being towed, but the hydro graphics surveys that have been done by a number of different agencies show that the buildup is not significant enough to prevent us from being able to remove it from the pier,” Fogg said.
Fogg says the hull is in great shape and there should be no issues getting it to Mobile to be cleaned.
No explosives will be used when it's time to sink the ship. If all goes according to plan, it will land upright at the bottom of the gulf.
Lining the pier’s fence are sentimental goodbye notes and flowers.