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A RESOLUTION <br />Of the City Council of Hastings, Minnesota <br />Urging Congress to Provide for the Permanent Exemption <br />of the Steamer Delta Queen from the Provisions <br />of the Safety of Life at Sea Act of 1966 <br />WHEREAS the Delta Queen is a living connection to the culture and history of <br />the Mississippi River and all of its tributaries; and <br />WHEREAS this steamboat is a national treasure listed on the National Register <br />of Historic Places and designated a National Historic Landmark; and <br />WHEREAS the vessel is an original and the last of her kind, the culmination of <br />the art of steamboat craftsmen, an authentic sternwheel overnight passenger <br />steamboat like those that helped foster the growth and settlement of our nation; <br />and <br />WHEREAS the Delta Queen has operated safely for eighty years (the last <br />thirty-seven of those under extensions previously granted by Congress) and has <br />been updated with fire detection and suppression equipment in addition to her <br />extensive sprinkler system in all public and passenger spaces, has had all her <br />wooden surfaces coated throughout with NASA-developed fire-resistant paint, <br />is patrolled every twenty minutes at night by fire watchmen, has a crew trained <br />and drilled regularly in emergency evacuation procedures, and is regularly <br />inspected each year by the United States Coast Guard; and <br />WHEREAS the Safety at Sea Act was written to apply to ocean-going vessels <br />whose routes are remote from land and from other vessels, while the Delta <br />Queen can be safely landed within minutes over the entire route she traverses; <br />and <br />WHEREAS the steamboat contributes to the economy of the river communities <br />where she is based and where she makes shore stops through the goods and <br />services purchased by her passengers and crew, by the company which owns the <br />vessel, and by the third party businesses which provide the boat and her <br />passengers with amenities and services; and <br />WHEREAS our nation would suffer an irreparable loss if her operation were <br />suspended, thereby depriving the traveling public the opportunity to enjoy this <br />