Historic dry dock at Port of Brownsville retired
Jul. 16—A well-traveled floating dry dock built in the 1940s to service Navy vessels and relocated to the Port of Brownsville in the 1990s has been retired.
The advanced base sectional dock (ABSD-7) — capable of lifting ships and other vessels out of the water for inspection and repair — was completed between 1944 and 1945 at Chicago Bridge & Iron Co., Morgan City, Louisiana. In 1946, it was reclassified as an auxiliary floating dry dock (AFDB-7) and towed to Florida to be part of the Navy's Atlantic Reserve Fleet.
In the early 1960s, four sections of AFDB-7 were towed to Scotland, reassembled and put into service as the USS Los Alamos (AFDB-7) to help support the Navy's ballistic missile submarine fleet.
In 1991, the port and Keppel AmFELS (now Seatrium), partnered up to acquire a dry dock for use at the AmFELS yard, which needed one for its offshore oil rig fabrication and repair work. U.S. Rep. Solomon P. Ortiz, representing Texas 27th Congressional District at the time, helped locate the dock, which had become part of the Navy's James River Reserve Fleet in Virginia.
Ortiz sponsored successful legislation in 1993 to transfer the title of AFDB-7 to the Brownsville Navigation District, which governs the port.
"In 1994, the port and AmFELS entered into a purchase contract and operating agreement for the dry dock's transportation to the port, installation, operation and maintenance," said a port spokesman.
Three sections of the dry dock were towed to the port from Virginia.
The BND Board of Commissioners officially rechristened AFDB-7 to the "Solomon P. Ortiz" in recognition of the congressman's efforts. The dock became operational at the port in 1995, resulting in 300 new jobs created to satisfy AmFELS' increasing workload, according to the port.
The dock accommodated a number of drilling rigs and various maritime vessels during its time at the port, the spokesman said.
"The dry dock helped AmFELS land important projects supporting thousands of jobs in the Rio Grande Valley, and solidified the company as the foremost offshore shipyard on the Gulf of Mexico capable of designing, constructing and repairing mobile drilling rigs and offshore oil platforms," he said.
Khon-Whey Tay, Seatrium AmFELS senior marketing manager, said the dry dock was vital to several projects over the years.
The dock was retired in May and the contract for dismantling and recycling it awarded to SA Recycling-SteelCoast, also located at the port.
Even with the Solomon P. Ortiz out of commission Seatrium, which also builds vessels, continues to maintain offshore rigs at its yard, Tay said.
"Seatrium AmFELS remains committed to providing upgrades and repair services to rigs and vessels in the Gulf of Mexico," he said.
