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Dec. 12 (UPI) -- The decommissioned luxury liner SS United States won't be towed to a location off the coast of Okaloosa County, Fla., until further notice due to Coast Guard concerns regarding its seaworthiness. The 990-foot liner is scheduled to be sunk in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of the Florida Panhandle to create the world's largest artificial reef.
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The vessel originally was scheduled to be towed from its dock on the Delaware River in South Philadelphia on Nov. 14, but storm activity delayed its departure.
A new departure date hadn't been announced before Coast Guard officials recently questioned its seaworthiness and if it safely could be towed from South Philadelphia to Mobile, Ala., before being sunk.
Okaloosa County in September bought the ship from the SS United States Conservancy and intended to tow it on Nov. 15.
The Coast Guard inspected the vessel and on Nov. 20 issued a Captain of Port Order halting the move due to concerns the ship "may not have suitable stability for the intended transit and presents a hazardous condition to the port and waterway."
A subsequent Coast Guard inspection identified a tank in the vessel's port side that might be too weak for the voyage and affect its structural integrity.
The Coast Guard order also cited a large amount of oil residue in and around the vessel as a concern.
As the new owners of the SS United States, Okaloosa County will be charged a $100,000 fine for not removing the vessel by Friday after it earlier was evicted from its current dock location.
Before it can be moved, the Coast Guard says the vessel must be inspected and a condition report submitted by third party that is experienced in assessing the ships' structural integrity, seaworthiness and other concerns.
If the report shows the hull is weak, the report must show how it would be managed while towing the ship to Mobile and include emergency anchorage sites and safe harbors along the intended route.
The Coast Guard also requires all large amounts of oil that are not inside sealed tanks to be relocated to sealed tanks to prevent pollution.
If the vessel's Okaloosa County owners don't address the Coast Guard's concerns, the county could be fined $114,630 every day the vessel is in violation.
Okaloosa County paid $1 million to buy the vessel "as is" and agreed to allocate $1 million to help build an SS United States museum and pay its mooring costs on the Delaware River.
County officials also agreed to pay mooring rent and all related fees, including up to $200,000 for repairs to Pier 82, where it is moored.
