The once-celebrated ocean liner SS United States is set to be sunk off the Florida coast to become the world's largest artificial reef.
The 990-foot vessel, which once ferried presidents and Hollywood elite across the Atlantic, was decommissioned in 1969 and spent decades in failed restoration plans. On Wednesday, it is set to be sunk in a $13 million project with Okaloosa County, Florida, to create an artificial reef. If all goes as planned, tugboats will tow it about 25 miles off Destin-Fort Walton Beach, and ballast valves will flood its tanks for a slow sinking. No explosives will be used. It is hoped the ship will settle upright almost 200 feet below the surface, and its top funnels may be accessible to divers just 55 feet down. The project would make it bigger than the current record-holder, the USS Oriskani, and officials predict it could draw species such as red snapper, grouper, amberjack, mackerel and tuna. Supporters say it saves the ship from scrapping and gives marine life a hard surface to live on.