The Falls of Clyde, the only remaining iron-hulled four-masted full-rigged ship and the only surviving sail-driven oil tanker in the world, has been given a short reprieve from being scrapped or scuttled.
In late April, the Hawaii Department of Transportation’s Harbors Division put out a request for proposals for the “removal of the derelict sailing vessel Falls of Clyde from Honolulu Harbor.” The bids were due at 10 a.m. on Friday, May 21.
The Department of Transportation has now revoked the request for proposal to remove the ship. The DOT said in a review, “it turns out that not all state processes are upheld.” Therefore, the RFP was canceled “with great care.”
The Friends of the Falls of Clyde, the non-profit which nominally owns the ship, has argued that the characterization of the ship as a derelict is not accurate and that a public hearing should be required due to the ship’s status as a national historic landmark.
The DOT Port Authority will issue another solicitation on July 1 for the removal of the Falls of Clyde.
“Because the hurricane season is less than two weeks old, the Port Authority feels it is important to remove degraded vessels to prevent potential blockages at Honolulu Harbor,” DOT said in a statement. I will. “The Port Department has spent about $ 30,000 on repairs and pumping to keep dilapidated vessels afloat.”
Might have been cheaper to do a haul out
Old sailing ships hold amazing stories. They are also incredibly expensive to maintain including overhauling. Perhaps a distinction can be made between historical and derelict. Our new Navy ships might be considered derelicts when they don’t work because of propulsion and other problems or weather poorly.
We had prepared a bid, which would have had her out of the harbor in July/Aug, but they cancelled the process. We remain ready to offer a solution if DOT are still looking for one?