The shipyard where the yacht is being built asks to dismantle the middle part of the historic centuries-old bridge so that the ship can go to the open sea. According to media reports, Bezos has already paid the bill for the temporary dismantling of the attraction.
Billionaire Jeff Bezos’ $540 Y721 superyacht has yet to leave Oceano’s shipyard in Alblasserdam in the west of the Netherlands, but a huge scandal has already flared up around it. informs Bloomberg.
An announcement has appeared on Facebook of an event scheduled for June 1 this year, in which Pablo Strörmann calls on the people of Rotterdam to go to the Koningshavenbrug bridge in Rotterdam, known as De Hef, with rotten eggs and throw them at a luxury ship when it passes through the bridge.
“Take a box of (rotten) eggs with you and let’s toss them into Jeff’s superyacht as it passes through De Hef in Rotterdam. Rotterdam was built from rubble by the people of Rotterdam, and we’re not just tearing it apart for the sake of the phallus, the symbol of the billionaire suffering delusions of grandeur. Not without a fight! “- the publication says.
The reason for such an event was the information that in order for the yacht to leave the shipyard and go to sea, it will be necessary to partially dismantle the middle part of the historic railway bridge. According to media reports, the shipyard has already asked for it, and Bezos has paid the bill.
Typically new ships pass under the bridge with a clearance of 40 meters before their masts are assembled. But the superstructure of the Bezos ship is higher than the bridge: the height of the vessel is 41 meters and the length is 127 meters. It has three huge masts and three decks. The shipyard considers it inappropriate to release an unfinished object.
Yacht Y721 being built for $175 billion Amazon founder Jeff Bezos
So far, Rotterdam has not received permission to temporarily remove the bridge to let Bezos’ superyacht through, and the city’s mayor, Ahmed Abutaleb, has denied the decision has been made. He added that everything will become known after the application for a permit and impact assessment.
However, Marcel Vlravens, a spokesman for local authorities, voiced an opinion that may indicate what the final verdict of the city’s leadership will be. The official claims that this project is very important for the economy of Rotterdam, and it is simply impossible to complete the construction of the yacht anywhere.
“Rotterdam highly values its reputation as the ‘sea capital of Europe’. Shipbuilding and all work in this sector is the city’s most important pillar,” he said.
In turn, the local left-wing party GroenLinks called for an emergency council debate over the bridge.
“This man made his money by squeezing staff, evading taxes and regulations, and now we have to tear down our beautiful national monument? This is really going too far,” GroenLinks adviser Stephan Leavis said.
“Deze man heeft zijn geld verdiend door het uitknijpen van personeel, het ontwijken van belastingen/regelgeving en nu moeten wij ons mooie rijksmonument afbreken? Dat gaat echt een brug te ver” aldus @StephanLeewis die hierover een debat heeft aangevraagd.https://t.co/C5GvEztQcu
— GroenLinks Rotterdam (@groenlinksrdam) February 2, 2022
The decision to temporarily dismantle part of the bridge was also criticized by the head of the Historical Society of Rotterdam, Ton Wesselink. According to him, at first he considered the information that appeared to be a joke, but when he found out that it was true, he became very angry.
De Hef was first built over the river Nieuwe Maas in 1927 and has since become a key tourist attraction in Rotterdam. In 1933, the Dutchman Lou Vlasblom made a record dive from the top of the bridge for that time. Two weeks later, Ian Tubberney died trying to replicate the stunt.
The bridge with two towers and a green tint of steel was badly damaged in 1940 during the bombing of Rotterdam and is now officially protected as a tourist attraction.
De Hef railway bridge (Koningshavenbrug)
Previous attempts to permanently demolish the bridge, such as in 1993, have met with fierce opposition from local residents who have managed to block the plan. From 2014 to 2017, the pedestrian bridge between the two towers did not function due to restoration work, after which the mayor’s office promised not to take it apart again.
The passage of the superyacht under the Koningshaven bridge is scheduled for the upcoming summer. It is assumed that the half-dismantled bridge will stand for a maximum of several weeks.
What is known about the superyacht Y721
Last October, the superyacht, known as Y721, was launched from the Zwijndrecht shipyard and then moved to Alblasserdam for final fitting. It is being built by Oceanco. and is believed to be based on the 106-meter yacht Black Pearl. Built in 2018 for Russian billionaire Oleg Burlakov, who died last June, this is the largest sailing yacht in the world with three 70-meter-high carbon fiber masts.
Yacht “Black Pearl” (Black Pearl)
A smaller escort ship with a length of 75 meters is supposed to accompany the yacht. It will have a helipad, as there is no space for it on the main ship due to the huge masts.
It will also carry cars, speedboats and, most likely, a mini-submarine.