Death-31

July 31, 2005, USS Sterett CG-31 was sold to International Shipbreaking of Brownsville, TX for dismantling and disposal.

Sterett arrived in Brownsville Monday November 28, 2005 following a transit via the Panama Canal.

International Shipbreaking web Site
http://www.shiprecycling.com/

July 2005 Sitting in MARAD, Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility, Benicia, CA	Photo courtesy of Tim Page
July 2005 Sitting in MARAD, Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility, Benicia, CA	Photo courtesy of Tim Page
31 July 2005	Contract completed in transfer of Sterett from Navy to ISL "International Shipbreaking Ltd., Brownsville, Texas, is being awarded one of three estimated ceiling cost $25,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, fixed price award-fee contracts for the dismantling and recycling of inactive ships stricken from the Naval Vessel Register. The initial award is for environmental remediation, dismantling and metals recycling of ex-Sterret (CG 31). Each vessel will be bid individually and awarded under a delivery order to the successful bidder. Performance incentives are also included for superior environmental and safety performance. Work will be performed in Brownsville, Texas, and is expected to be completed by August 2009. The contract was competitively procured and advertised via the Internet, with nine offers received. Contract funds in the amount of $2,784,982 will expire by the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. (N00024-05-D-4211)" reference http://www.defenselink.mil/contracts/2005/ct20050729.html
17 October 2005 Sterett being towed away from MARAD, Benicia, CA
17 October 2005 Sterett being towed away from MARAD, Benicia, CA	Photo courtesy of ISL (International Shipbreaking, Ltd.)
17 October 2005 Sterett being towed away from MARAD, Benicia, CA	Photo courtesy of ISL (International Shipbreaking, Ltd.)
17 October 2005 Sterett being towed under the Benicia bridge, away from MARAD, Benicia, CA	Photo courtesy of ISL (International Shipbreaking, Ltd.)
17 October 2005 Under tow across SF Bay, headed for Texas & dismantling	Photo courtesy of Ted Hunt, YAQUINA, Army Corps of Engineers
17 October 2005 Under tow across SF Bay, headed for Texas & dismantling	Photo courtesy of Ted Hunt, YAQUINA, Army Corps of Engineers
17 October 2005 Under tow across SF Bay, headed for Texas & dismantling	Photo courtesy of Ted Hunt, YAQUINA, Army Corps of Engineers
17 October 2005 Under tow across SF Bay, headed for Texas & dismantling	Photo courtesy of Ted Hunt, YAQUINA, Army Corps of Engineers
November 2005	Sterett arrived in Brownsville TX at the ISL facility the last week of November 2005
Ebay	An eBay seller boarded the Sterett on December 12, 13, & 14, 2005 for the purpose of obtaining artifacts. Below you will see one of our crewmen approaching the Sterett in the early morning hours. Photo courtesy of Steve Hilsz & Nate Carpenter Conditions were quite muddy, since the shipyard is entirely earth and it had rained recently. An approximately 1/2 mile walk through heavy mud was necessary to reach the Sterett. Each day both crewmen walked 1/2 mile to and 1/2 mile from the ship. Photo courtesy of Steve Hilsz & Nate Carpenter In the above photo, the STERETT is straight ahead, and a portion of the stern of the US Navy fleet oiler USS WACCAMAW can be seen on the left. We had the run of the entire ship, since we were fortunate enough to reach the Sterett before any cutting or abatement work had begun. From that respect we worked under good conditions. The ships were not powered so we used battery powered miner's lamps on our hardhats. Hand tools were brought aboard the Sterett to remove the various artifacts, which were very difficult to remove due to heavy paint and having been mounted for 40 years. Here is an interestingly decorated door, which was found on the inside of a storage space on the deck above the helicopter bay. Photo courtesy of Steve Hilsz & Nate Carpenter
Video	ISL's video of operations - CAUTION - this is a large file (89,000 kb)