The State : Exxon Valdez Heads for Port

After weeks of idling in waters off the coast, the battered and reviled Exxon Valdez began its slow journey into San Diego Harbor, where it will undergo extensive repairs to its hull--and possibly a name change. The tanker ran aground on March 24 in Alaska’s Prince William Sound, causing the biggest oil spill in U.S. history. The tanker was inspected off San Clemente Island by California officials, who gave the go-ahead for the tow operation to begin after no oily discharges were spotted. If the tanker passes two more inspections during its 2-m.p.h. journey to the harbor, it should dock at National Steel & Shipyard Co., where it was built, at about 9 a.m. today. The tanker is to undergo nine months of reconstruction at a cost of $25 million. Exxon officials hinted earlier this week that the ill-fated tanker might also be rechristened.