Repairs underway for S.D. Harbor icon “Star of India”

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This Tuesday, The Star Of India, one of the icons of San Diego Harbor, was moved from the Martime Museum of San Diego to the South bay for maintenance.

Expected cost to repair this historic ship will be around $225,000 and it estimated to take 3 weeks to finish. This may change once the boat is out of water and they have examined it in detail.

“We hope we don’t find any surprises down there,” said Robyn Gallant, the museum’s director of public events, to ABC 10 News. He also mentioned that they will be adding a special ceramic coating, which will be applied to the ship’s hull to further preserve it. A fresh coat of paint will also be applied onto the Star of India. This process occurs every tens years to keep the Star in seaworthy condition and to meet U.S Coast Guard requirements.

According to officials, the Star will have to miss its annual sail in November due to the repairs, as they are unable to cover the costs for both of these events.

According to the San Diego Maritime Museum, The Star of India is worlds oldest active ship. It began on the stocks at Ramsey Shipyard in the Isle of Man in 1863. The ship was first named the Euterpe but renamed the Star of India in 1906 when it hauled canned salmon from Alaska. The Star of India was laid up in San Diego in 1923 and not fully restored until 1976.