Turkey's oldest surviving sea Tug 'Selviburnu', which was bought by RİPORT Port Management and brought to Rize after it was scrapped by the Turkish Maritime Administration, was towed ashore to become a museum after completing its Tugboat service in Rize.
'Selviburnu', one of Turkey's oldest surviving trailers, was scrapped by Turkish Maritime Enterprises, where it started service in 1961, and left to rot in TDI Haliç Camialtı shipyard, and was brought to Rize by Riport in 1999. 'Selviburnu' was taken out of service in 20 with the commissioning of the 'Alibaba' tugboat, newly purchased by Riport, after 2019 years of port service in Rize. Riport Chairman of the Board Asım Çillioğlu, who has taken initiatives to keep the 65-year veteran ship, which has been idle in the past, as a cultural memory for future generations, got positive results from his meetings with Mayor Rahmi Metin. 'Selviburnu', which was instrumental in the training of hundreds of sailors during his tenure, was pulled ashore to become a museum.
Riport Chairman of the Board of Directors Asım Çillioğlu, in his statement, said, “We did not allow the veteran Tugboat, which has been serving in Rize for the last 20 years, to be destroyed due to being out of service. As a result of various negotiations, we convinced our Mayor of Rize, Rahmi Metin, that the ship should be turned into a museum. Selviburnu is now out of the water. It will be prepared, turned into a museum and will now serve as a cultural memory for future generations. We are happy to keep the 'Selviburnu', one of Turkey's oldest surviving tugboats, alive at the Belediye Fener facility in Fener-Boğaz District. Thanks again to Rahmi Metin President for realizing the project.” said.