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OPINIONS
Editorial: Delta Queen should receive another exemption
The Delta Queen passes the Guyandotte boat ramp at Huntington this past summer, heading down the river and into the sunset. A similar scene could play out this evening as the Delta Queen makes its last scheduled trip past Huntington as an overnight passenger boat. Overnight trips could end if the boat does not get another exemption of safety standards from Congress. The Delta Queen has received nine such exemptions in the past 40 years.
Today could be the final trip for the Delta Queen past Huntington, Ashland, Ironton and other communities along the Ohio River here in the Tri-State. Actually, it could be this evening after dark. Either way, unless Congress acts, the stately old riverboat may not be seen on the Ohio River again, at least as an overnight passenger boat.
The Delta Queen does not meet standards of the Safety of Life at Sea law because it has a wood structure. It has received nine exemptions since 1968, but it might not get a 10th before its current exemption expires on Oct. 31.
The 82-year-old Delta Queen is a recognized National Historic Landmark. But some lawmakers and the Coast Guard do not want it to receive another exemption so it may remain in business.
An article in the Cincinnati Enquirer last year quoted Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, as opposing the exemption because, he said, the boat's advanced age and wood construction present an unacceptable safety risk.
Forget the fact that the Delta Queen is seldom far from shore. It's not like the boat is sailing the Pacific Ocean. On most of the rivers where it operates, it's seldom more than a few minutes from land.
The article also noted that Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Chairman Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, also opposed the exemption, mainly because the boat's crew is not unionized. Inouye said he would not support the exemption unless the Seafarers International Union gets behind it.
An exemption could very well be dead for this year. The Delta Queen could get an exemption next year and return to the Ohio in the future. It should. The Delta Queen is a true cultural landmark for the Ohio and Mississippi valleys. Although it is not an old-time Mississippi River steamer -- it was built in California and moved to the Ohio River after World War II -- it remains our best reminder of a way of life that is long past.
When the Delta Queen docks in a town for a few hours, it's an attraction like no other. Other passenger riverboats ply the rivers, but none has the tradition, the charm or the charisma of the Delta Queen. There's nothing like the sound of the Delta Queen's calliope playing as it leaves one city and heads for the next.
The Delta Queen and her sister boats have a safety record that would make other forms of transportation proud. Since that first exemption 40 years ago, the various owners of the Delta Queen have taken many steps to make the boat safer and more fire-resistant.
It's not like Majestic America Lines, which owns the Delta Queen, is asking for $700 billion to keep it running. All it needs is another exemption, preferably a permanent one.
Almost all people who ride the Delta Queen are adults who are able to assess the risks of riding a wooden boat on a river where the shore is seldom more than a few hundred feet away. If the Delta Queen goes out of business as an overnight passenger boat, it should be for financial reasons, not political ones.
Even if it is too late for this year, it's not too early for next year. Bills granting another exemption have been introduced in Congress, but with an election going on, their fate is uncertain.
The Delta Queen should receive another exemption.
