BUFFALO, N.Y. (WUTV) — A historic World War II Naval ship under repairs is now sinking in Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park in New York
Crews have been repairing holes in USS The Sullivans in August 2021 and it started taking on water Wednesday night.
The deteriorating condition of the ship was known; steps were planned to prevent what has happened.
On April 4 of this year, Park President Paul Marzello and Rep. Brian Higgins announced $490,000 in federal dollars to help with repairs. They warned about the ship taking on water and needing to act quickly.
"What you see now is a vessel that's floating, however below the waterline, that's the critical point that we talk about. Below the waterline is where she is damaged," Marzello said. "We have several perforations that need to be patched, we have several works that need to be formed on the interior ship, on the underside, down near the keel is probably the area where she needs the most work."
From the Buffalo Naval Park Entry on the ship:
The Buffalo Naval Park’s decommissioned Fletcher-class Destroyer, DD-537, was the largest and most important class of U.S. Destroyers used in World War II. USS The Sullivans, named after the five brothers from Waterloo, Iowa, was the only ship in the Navy to be named after more than one person. She was commissioned in 1943 and saw action in the Pacific Theater, shooting down eight Japanese planes, bombarding Iwo Jima and Okinawa, as well as rescuing American pilots and crew from burning or sinking vessels. She also saw action during the Korean War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. USS The Sullivans was decommissioned in 1965 earning 11 battle stars for meritorious performances, and is now a historic landmark moored at the Buffalo Waterfront.
On board you will see what it was like to serve as a “Tin Can Sailor” along with 310 of your shipmates. She is also a place for reflection and remembrance for the five Sullivan brothers who died together, an act which is borne out in her motto “We Stick Together!”
DD-537
Length: 376 feet
Beam: 39 feet
Draft: 19 feet
Displacement: 2,100 tons
Armament: Four 5-inch/38 caliber guns; one 3-inch/50 caliber gun; two twin-40 mm guns; depth charges
Complement: 310 Sailors
It’s too soon to have a full damage assessment, let alone determine the repairs that will be needed to preserve The Sullivans for the long term. Let us hope the ship can be raised, repaired, and be on display for years to come. This ship represents history spanning decades, as well as being a tribute to the sacrifice of the Sullivan brothers. The wikipedia entry details the long career of the ship, from World War II on. This is history that needs to be saved.