The derelict and abandoned ship Albert is facing removal and deconstruction if the owner doesn’t respond by Oct. 21.
The 112-foot-long Albert has been illegally docked at the 24th Ave NW street end pier for six years. Earlier this year, Seattle City Attorney Erika Evans successfully pursued legal action against Albert‘s owner, and the court imposed civil penalties totaling $185,500 in June. The judge also ordered that the owner pay an additional $500 per day until the vessel was removed.
It’s been four months since the ruling, and Albert hasn’t moved.
The city has been somewhat at a loss as to how to handle it. Ethan Bergerson from the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) told My Ballard in September that this is the first time the department has had to move a ship from a public dock, so they reached out to the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for assistance.
Troy Wood, program manager with DNR’s Derelict Vessel Removal Program (DVRP) told My Ballard that after inspecting the ship, they found it’s showing signs of sinking. They’ll be removing Albert next week if the owner doesn’t step forward.
“Rather than wait until it does sink, we intend to take custody of vessel on behalf of the City of Seattle. We intend to store it on land until we have gathered the funds to deconstruct the vessel,” Wood said.
The thing is, Albert isn’t any old ship. It has a rich history that spans nearly a century, and a local researcher is even writing a book about it.
In his research, Chris Mills (of Sea Lion Radio fame) found that Albert was named in honor of Albert Thorvaldsson, an Icelandic fisherman who disappeared at sea in 1936 while tending fishing nets near the town of Olafsfjordur. Thorvaldsson’s family fundraised to have Albert built as Northern Iceland’s first rescue vessel. It was built in Reykjavik and launched in 1956.
The Icelandic Coast Guard used Albert as a search-and-rescue and research vessel during the Cod Wars until the late 1970s, and then left Iceland and led a varied life as a diving charter boat, mail carrier in Costa Rica, and support vessel during the Exxon Valdez oil spill cleanup in Alaska.
And now it seems Albert has been forgotten.
The Washington DNR has posted a notice of intent to obtain custody of Albert that outlines the plan for the ship.
The DNR’s notice says that the owner may keep Albert if they do one of three things before Oct. 22: Get authorization to moor or anchor the vessel at its current location, or move it to an anchorage area or moorage facility that authorizes the vessel, or remove the vessel from the water.
Wood told My Ballard that if the owner doesn’t take action, they will remove and dispose of Albert next week, and will bill the owner for all costs. He added that if the owner doesn’t reimburse the DVRP, the department may seek remedy in court.
“Also, in accordance with RCW 79.100, the owner may come forward, at any time, to reclaim the vessel by paying for all our costs to date,” Wood said.
The 24th Ave NW pier where Albert has been docked all these years was rebuilt in 2018 as part of the Seattle Public Utilities’ Ship Canal Water Quality Project. The project was intended to improve pedestrian access to the waterfront, but Albert has taken up most of the pier since it was remodeled.
Photo: Dan Strauss