A Romanian gunboat from the Second World War is to be sold as scrap. Eugen Stihi was taken out of service in 2004, has been rusting at the quay and has deteriorated year by year. A plan by the authorities to turn it into a museum did not succeed.
The ship was built in 1916 at the naval yard in the French port of Lorient and was first named Friponne. It reached Romania in 1920 and was renamed Eugen Stihi in honour of a Romanian Navy hero killed in the Battle of Turtucaia.
According to a ȘtirileProTV correspondent, the gunboat has a history of more than a century. It took part in naval mine-clearing missions and was also used as a training ship for future Romanian sailors of that period. It served in the Second World War, was taken over by the Soviets in 1944 and was returned to Romania a year later. It was later converted into a hydrographic vessel and used to train military personnel.
The ship was withdrawn from service in 2004. Some maintenance was carried out, but it deteriorated and is now covered in rust in the Military Port of Mangalia.
Reserve flotilla rear admiral Sorin Learschi said it is hard to watch a ship disappear physically while its symbol remains, and that he does not believe there is still any way to preserve the last of the four gunboats that were the workhorses of the Romanian Navy. He said there were no resources to protect the ship.
Retired rear admiral Constantin Șorobea said Romania has a long history that also shows tradition and European and international links, and that Stihi was an important page of history for sailors and for Romania.
In 2015, Mangalia City Hall wanted to take over the ship and turn it into a museum, but the plan was not completed. Mayor Paul Foleanu said the documents were sent to the Ministry of National Defence and that the steps were never finished for reasons he does not know.
The gunboat Eugen Stihi will therefore go for scrap. It was transferred from the Ministry of National Defence to the Ministry of Economy and has now reached the Mangalia Shipyard, which is to find a company to dismantle it.