Beloved Ocean Institute Ship 'Pilgrim' Slowly Sinks In Dana Point Harbor

DANA POINT (CBSLA) — A beloved ship at The Ocean Institute in Dana Point keeled early Sunday morning and began sinking in Dana Point Harbor.

The ship, Pilgrim, has been used by hundreds of thousands of students and visitors.

The Ocean Institute had been raising money for maintenance but deemed that the ship is now beyond repair.

"We are sad to bid farewell to this iconic vessel which has been such an important part of Ocean Institute's programs and to the children that they served," they said.

With schools being out due to the coronavirus crisis and field trips to the boat coming to a halt, The Ocean Institue "has been dealt very difficult blows this month."

In a video posted to their Twitter Monday morning, The Ocean Institute provided an update on the ship saying, "Right now we have a salvage crew down on the boat. We got the diesel fuel out of the boat and today, what we are hoping to do is to be able to lift the boat our of the water, get as much out as possible and be able to stabilize it as best we can."

Pilgrim undergoes out-of-the water and underwater inspections as part of The Ocean Institue's maintenance process. In 2016, Pilgrim was hauled out for survey and repairs and in October 2019, The Ocean Institue began a fund to support the haul-out and repair scheduled to take place in January 2020.

According to the institute, the haul-out was postponed until June due to an overload in the shipyard but maintained certifications from the United States Coast Guard allowing them to continue dockside programs.

An inspection is planned to determine what caused the ship to keel over.

The Ocean Institute also set up a donation page on their website.

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