MS World Discoverer was a cruise ship designed for and built by Schichau Unterweser, Germany in 1974. During construction called BEWA Discoverer, the ship was completed in Bremerhaven, Germany. In 2000, the ship struck an underwater obstacle and was damaged; it was subsequently grounded – to prevent sinking – and abandoned in the Solomon Islands. To this date the local community has requested assistance from an environmental protection agency to assist with the clean up, and it has been refused. Further they tried to get the ship removed, or get compensated for it, but have received nothing to date. They were advised that they were time barred in their claim.