Okaloosa County, Fla. (WMBB) – No one has said that sailing in Okaloosa County with SS US is smooth.
A group in Brooklyn, New York has filed a lawsuit to prevent Okaloosa officials from sinking the ship.
Last fall, the Okaloosa County commissioner voted to buy SS US for $10 million and sank 20 miles from the Destin coast to create the world’s largest artificial reef.
The idea is to attract divers and fishermen and boost tourism. The ship still holds records for crossing the Atlantic.
Before resigning in 1969, he carried four presidents and dozens of celebrities. Several investors have tried to renovate it for use as a cruise ship or a floating hotel. But none of the plans have come to fruition.
The ship had been docking in Philadelphia for the past 30 years, but was about to be discarded before Okaloosa County could intervene.
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The two-week sales and two-week trip to the Gulf Coast have produced news from around the world. That was when the New York Union formed a coalition to save the steamships United States.
Members believe that the historic steamship should be saved and converted into a floating hotel or museum in Brooklyn.
The group first called on President Donald Trump to stop Okaloosa’s plans. A lawsuit was then filed.
An Okaloosa official filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, noting that ships had been out of need since the mid-90s. However, the federal judge refused.
The Union does not provide financial plans to return the ship to Brooklyn or renovate it for future use.
Meanwhile, the ship is located at a shipyard in Mobile, Alabama, where crews strip away all non-metallic materials and prepare for sinking.
Work continues as the New York Union failed to file an injunction to stop the process.
Okaloosa County officials are expected to sink the ship early next year, unless the court stops the project.
