By Alabama Public Radio
Bayou La Batre, AL – After a day's delay due to the weather, the pirate ship Black Pearl is expected to hit the waters of Bayou La Batre Wednesday. An official with Steiner Shipyard says the sail will be in preparation for a weekend launch to the Caribbean. The 130-foot vessel is expected to sail Wednesday morning for the first time under the city's bridge to the south part of the Bayou. Crews will test the hull and engines of the ship. They'll then spend the rest of the week fitting the Black Pearl with its characteristic tall masts. A Disney crew is scheduled to sail the vessel out of the Bayou Saturday. They'll take the Black Pearl to the Caribbean for filming. The pitch-black ship is actually a huge wooden prop built on top of a modern, 96-foot-long steel utility boat. It was built at Steiner Shipyard for planned sequels to the 2003 movie "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl."