Tuesday May 27, 2025
San Francisco Chronicle —
A ship known for its missions to raise awareness about the problem of marine debris sank Sunday in the Oakland Estuary, authorities said.
The Kaisei, a large double-masted sailing vessel, sank at a dock behind the Nob Hill Foods grocery store in Alameda shortly after 6 p.m., said U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Kenneth Wiese, a spokesperson for the agency.
Wiese said the approximately 100-foot ship is owned by the Ocean Voyages Institute. A Sausalito nonprofit founded in 1979, the institute has run ocean cleanup operations, according to its website.
The Kaisei is the namesake of the nonprofit’s Kaisei Project, focused on cleaning the ocean of marine debris, trash and plastics. Though it appears much older, it is a modern replica, previously used as a Japanese training vessel. The ship sailed on three scientific voyages to an area often called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.