Last year the web erupted in frenzy when it was confirmed that two mysterious barges, floating off the coast in San Francisco and Portland, were owned by Google and happened to be related to a super secret project. There was a lot of speculation about the purpose of these barges with some even claiming that they would be floating stores for the Google Glass. It has now been discovered that the barges are literally dead in the water due to fire-safety concerns “repeatedly raised” by the Coast Guard.
Google itself had described the barges as “interactive spaces where people can learn about new technology.” But the company halted construction on these interactive spaces once the Coast Guard raised fire-safety concerns, documents obtained by The Wall Street Journal under a Freedom of Information Act request show.
An official with the Coast Guard told Google’s contractor that the vessels will have “over 5,000 gallons of fuel on the main deck and a substantial amount of combustible material on board,” further warning that the design wouldn’t make evacuation easy in case of a fire. A later review by the Coast Guard found that the barge didn’t have fire-safety features “typical required” of such vessels.
So ultimately Google decided not to press its case and give up on the floating interactive spaces altogether. The one off the coast in Portland has already been sold for scrap.
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