Two years ago four steel electric-class ferries were taken out of service in Washington state for safety reasons. This month they will be towed to Mexico and cut up for recycling.

The ferries are 82 years old. The first two, named Nisqually and Quinault will towed from Engle Harbor to Ensenada, Mexico this week. Their sister ships Klickitat and lllahee will follow within a couple of weeks.

The State of Washington managed to sell the boats in June to Eco Planet Recycling in California. They were paid $50 000 per boat. The boats were taken out of service in November of 2007, because their hulls had been corroded and were too expensive to fix.

The ferries were first used in 1927 in San Francisco. They were used right after the Golden Gate Bridge opened. The boats could carry 616 passengers and 59 vehicles.

“They’ve endeared themselves to people’s hearts because they’ve been reliable over the years, in good weather, bad weather, sunny days, wintry days,” said ferry system chief naval architect Doug Russell, “The ferries are part of the family, just like the ferry workers are. They’re like a trusted friend.”