HONOLULU (AP) - A group that working save a historic Hawaii ship built in Scotland has made arrangements for the vessel to return to its homeland early next year.
David O’Neill, the director of the Scotland-based nonprofit organization Save Falls of Clyde International, has negotiated a deal with a Dutch heavy lift operator to transport the ship from Honolulu to Scotland, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported .
The Falls of Clyde would be loaded on to Sevenstar’s Yacht Express in February, O’Neill said. It would stop in San Diego, Costa Rica, Florida and New York. It’s expected in Scotland in April.
An earlier shipping plan fell through over the summer.
Russell & Co. built the vessel in Port Glasgow in 1878. It’s believed to be the last surviving ship of a fleet named after Scottish waterfalls. It came to Hawaii when Matson, Hawaii’s biggest shipping company, acquired it. It later became an oil tanker.
In Honolulu Harbor, the ship became a museum and hosted weddings, funerals, parties, military re-enlistment ceremonies and a re-enactment of the Boston Tea Party. It was also available for school tours.
But the state Department of Transportation impounded the ship after determining its deteriorating condition posed a risk to the harbor. It’s no longer open to the public.
The department said Friday that it had not received a copy of the contract for transporting the vessel to Scotland, and declined to comment.
Bruce McEwan, president of Honolulu-based Friends of Falls of Clyde, said he is confident the transport will happen this time.
“I’m as confident as I can be,” said McEwan. “I know there’s been a lot of publicity in Scotland and the U.K. I’ve been getting a lot of congratulatory emails from the U.K. Everything seems to be coming together as it should. . It’s just a matter of dotting the final i’s and crossing the final t’s, if there are any.”
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Information from: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, http://www.staradvertiser.com
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