Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Over the last several days, folks at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park have been hard at work pumping water out of the USS The Sullivans, after a breach in the wall of the hull resulted in the 79-year-old destroyer taking on water and severely listing to the right.
Efforts have also gone towards pumping out oil and other contaminants that have entered the water, as a result of the historic ship sinking in the Buffalo Harbor.
Despite all the efforts from a number of different groups, including the U.S. Coast Guard, there is still no timetable as to when the World War II era ship will be righted in the waters of the Buffalo River.
However, support for the historic vessel has come from near and far, with many people locally, nationally, and even internationally backing the efforts of everyone at the Buffalo Naval Park to, once again, save the Sullivans from disaster.
"The outpouring of support that has come from not only the Western New York community but all across the country - even a few different countries - has been just totally outstanding," said President and CEO of the Buffalo Naval Park, Paul Marzello. "It's very heartening to our staff and to the workers and to our board that we have people behind us. This is not us out alone, that we have a team. We not only have a team of supporters, but we have an expert team that's doing the work, which is extremely important for the public to know."
It was just last February when the USS The Sullivans was compromised on the left side of the hull, resulting the vessel to list to her left. Repair work had been done on the ship, and more than $1 million was fundraised in the "Save The Sullivans" campaign.
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Among the members of the community who helped contribute to the restoration of The Sullivans more than a year ago included President of West Herr Auto Group, Scott Bieler, as well as local developer Douglas Jemal. Marzello says the number of community leaders that have already reached out to lend a hand is staggering.
"What I'm reluctant to do, at this point, is to put a budget together, or to tell them what the extent of the damage will be or the expenses," he said. "So I truly appreciate everything that's coming our way, in terms of, 'What do you need?'"
As for Jemal, he recognizes the extent of the damage that the ship has taken with this latest breach of the hull. He confirmed that he has already reached out to not only Marzello and the Buffalo Naval Park, but also to the Sullivan family to offer his support to help right the ship once more.
"Right now, we're in a rescue mode on the ship," said Jemal of the ongoing efforts. "Obviously, you certainly read what's going on, the Coast Guard's involved, it's an environmental cleanup - that has to be done. TNT Marine has been brought in from Detroit to stabilize the ship and bring her back up again and stand her up straight. So work's in progress."
Jemal is also optimistic that by the end of the week, the Sullivans should be fine once more.
For the time being, the operation down at the Buffalo Naval Park is very much like a military base. The area has been fenced off from the public, with large amounts of equipment on-hand to help the cleanup efforts with both the ship and the Buffalo Harbor.
In addition, the team that has been assembled to handle the cleanup efforts continue to work and fight the conditions in order to get the ship righted.
"This is very much a well-coordinated, well-thought out plan of action, which is going on," Marzello said. "We're meeting three times a day: 7 o'clock in the morning, 12:00 - noon - and then again at 16:00 [4 p.m. ET]. In each of those sessions, we bring together that talent pool. In the morning, we lay out the tests that are going to be performed during the day. At noon, we re-evaluate and check on operations to see if there needs to be any adjustments to the plan. At 4 o'clock, we have a debriefing and talk about what was accomplished and what we need to set up for the next day.
"This expert team that we have is an internationally-renowned team. So we have total confidence that when they say they're going to clean this ship, they're going to clean it, and I feel safe that we could let not only the volunteers who want to come and help out, but visitors and welcome them back to tour the ships."
Support and help for the ship has already come from all levels of government. The City of Buffalo, Erie County and New York State have already pledged their support to save the historic vessel, and efforts for help from the federal government are now underway due to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Sen. Schumer was in Buffalo on Monday, as he announced a three-pronged plan that is geared towards helping the Buffalo Naval Park in its efforts to not only raise the USS The Sullivans from the waters of the Buffalo Harbor, but also to restore the ship and help clean the surrounding environmental areas affected by the oil leaking from the ship.
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"It's just another layer of government that has reached out to us," Marzello said of Sen. Schumer's support for the Sullivans. "It is so appreciated and so helpful to know that we are in the spotlight for all of these political concerns, and their efforts to represent everybody of their constituents, whether it's their local, state, county, federal. It's bringing together people that realize the value of the Naval Park and what this ship represents."
While folks are not allowed to come down to the Naval Park to show their support or help the cause at this time, Marzello says there are a couple of ways people can contribute.
The first way dates back to the "Save The Sullivans" campaign that helped fundraise more than $1 million for the vessel more than a year ago.
"There is an official website. It's entitled: SaveTheSullivans.org. So if people would like to make a donation, they can please go to that site and it will be 100% donated to the preservation of this ship," Marzello said.
The other way people can show their support and contribute to the efforts is through the proceeds earned through merchandise.
"We will have some official USS The Sullivans merchandise, and they can purchase that either through the Buffalo Naval Park website, which is BuffaloNavalPark.org, or directly through the gift shop, which will be open starting Wednesday," Marzello explained. "There'll be a special fenced pathway to the gift shop, where they can shop in-person and buy directly in the gift shop."
While the road to recovery for the USS The Sullivans is expected to continue to be a long one, Marzello says no one is giving up on this fight. It is an effort that the workers on-hand take with pride every day to preserve and save a historic landmark for the City of Buffalo, and military veterans across the nation.
"The t-shirts that are going to be printed will have The Sullivans' logo on the front, and on the back, it will have a tagline. The choices will be: 'Don't give up the ship' or 'Failure is not an option,'" Marzello said. "In either case, those are the mantras that we have continually ended our meetings with, and everyone has great confidence that we will achieve that objective."
Hear more of our conversation with Marzello in the player below: