Governor Kathy Hochul announces $10 million to repair USS The Sullivans

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Monday that $10 million will go toward supporting the repair and restoration of USS The Sullivans and USS Croaker at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park.

The money will be used to keep the two World War II ships afloat and extend their lives, Hochul said in a statement. The announcement comes two years after USS The Sullivans partially sank due to a major hull breach.

USS The Sullivans, named after the five Sullivan brothers who were killed in World War II, was brought to Western New York in 1977. Following its partial sinking in April 2022, water was pumped out of the ships and divers went below to assess the damage.

By May 2022, USS The Sullivans was 95 percent righted and over 500,000 gallons of water were pumped out of the ship over the course of three weeks.

The total restoration of the two ships is expected to cost nearly $21 million, Hochul said, and the current plan is to move the ships to a dry-dock on Lake Erie in September 2025 for repairs to be made. In spring 2026, the ships will return to the Buffalo Harbor.

Hochul’s $10 million commitment follows other local, state and federal funding: $7.5 million secured by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, $1 million from the City of Buffalo, $1 million Erie County, $1 million from Senator Sean Ryan, and $500,000 from Majority Leader Crystal Peoples Stokes.

“USS The Sullivans is a tribute to our heroes — to a family that lost all five of its sons in the Pacific, and to the 400,000 Americans who died fighting in World War II,” Hochul said in a statement. “As an iconic and recognizable symbol on Buffalo’s waterfront, my administration is committed to helping rebuild and restore this national treasure and symbol of perseverance.”

Schumer visited Buffalo in July 2022 to announce his securing of federal funds, in which $2.5 million will come from the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Fund and $5 million will come from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Fund.

“These ships symbolize the courage, commitment, and sacrifice of every man and woman who has ever worn a U.S. military uniform,” Naval Park President Paul Marzello Sr. said in a statement. “There is no better way to honor them than preserving these ships. Today, thanks to the generous support of Governor Hochul, we will begin to execute the plan to make the needed repairs to their hulls and carry out that mission.”

To see all of WIVB News 4’s past coverage of USS The Sullivans, click here.

Katie Skoog joined the News 4 team in April 2024. She is a graduate from the University at Buffalo. You can view more of her work here .