That sinking feeling

A rash of tug sinkings in the past year has left the Canadian taxpayer on the hook for big bucks.

In July 2014 the former RCN tug St.Charles, later Chebucto Sea, but since 2012 carrying the unlikely name of Matterhorn sank at her berth in Mount Carmel, NL and remains sunken and leaking petroleum. Its registration was suspended July 31, 2014.
The Coast Guard has finally become fed up with the Owner's lack of action in cleaning up and raising the vessel and have issued an ultimatum (now past) . The Coast Guard will do the clean up and bill the owner, but so far have indicated that they will not be raising the wreck - that is up to the owner.
 

Believed to be associated with another Newfoundland tug owning concern, the owner is a single ship company and may well be able to dodge the bullet and get out from under the obligation by walking away.


That is certainly the case with Chaulk Determination, the former Commodore Straits and Haida Brave, which  sank at Trois-Rivières, QC December 26, 2014. Its owner claimed an inability to pay for cleanup. The Coast Guard hired Groupe Océan to raise the wreck, which they did most capably, but the $1 million plus tab was picked up by the taxpayer.

It has recently been announced that the tug will be towed to Matane, QC and broken up by Méridien Maritime - again at some cost to the taxpayer.

The most recent sinking of a tug and workboat in Cornwall, ON, will have a happier outcome at least for  the taxpayer anyway, since the owners have acted responsibly and stepped up to the plate with their salvage plan and have begun work to raise Lac Manitoba and L.C.M. 131 which capsized in turbulent waters June 22. 

It is not yet clear if either vessel will be worth repairing after they are raised. Lac Manitoba was built in 1944, and rebuilt in 1999. The former TANAC tug was operated by Nadro Marine an affiliate of McKeil Workboats. The latter company has taken charge of the salvage. L.C.M. 131 is a landing craft type workboat operated by West Front Construction Ltd which had voluntarily come to the assistance of Lac Manitoba when it was overwhelmed and sank nearby.

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Halifax built tug a sinker

One of the few tugs built in Halifax lies partially sunk at Trois-Rivières, QC after rolling on its side December 26. The unattended tug had been laid up for several years, and it is understood that the owners had been warned that it was at risk with the onset of winter weather. It had also been reported that the tug's engines had been at least partially dismantled.

Designed by Robert Allen Ltd it was built by Halifax Shipyards, when it was owned by the Dominion Steel + Coal Co, for the British Columbia forestry giant MacMillan-Bloedel. When it was launched October 26, 1965, at a cost of $1.25mn, it was the first tug built by the yard. Delivered to MacBlo's shipping arm Kingcome Navigation Ltd and named Haida Brave it went into service towing barges from Port Alberni and Powell River, BC to San Francisco and Long Beach, CA. The 350 ft long barges could carry 6500 tons of newsprint, and the trip could be up to 1200 n.mi., at the stately speed of 8 knots.
For this work the 566 grt tug was fitted with two 8 cylinder Werkspoor engines delivering 3470 bhp to twin screws.

The tug worked consistently through 1978  for Kingcome, then Reliance Towing Co when it was sold to Rivtow Straits Ltd, also of Vancouver and renamed Commodore Straits. It then expanded its duties towing log and cargo barges until it was laid up in 1990.

Mac Mackay collection - unknown photographer

 
In 2003 it was acquired by an affiliate of the Upper Lakes Group Inc of Toronto and given a thorough refit at Allied Shipbuilders Ltd in North Vancouver. It sailed light tug  via the Panama Canal and arrived in its new home port of Trois-Rivières, QC December 3, 2003.

Upper Lakes set up Distribution Grands Lacs / St-Laurent Inc., and used inland river type covered barges, shuttling grain from the Lakes through the Seaway to its elevator in Trois-Rivières.  The tug was not particularly well suited to pusher work, but spent some years on an off moving the barges.

By 2008 Upper Lakes established Marinelink Inc as a heavy lift operator to work on the St.Lawrence. They found an old heavy lift ship in the southern US and sent Commodore Straits to pick it up. It towed the Barge Laviolette south for sale to scrappers and returned with the ship Revival ex John Henry.
Joined by the tug Océan Golf off Pointe-au-Pic they stopped in Trois-Rivières.

 
Then in September 2008 Commodore Straits was joined by the tug Radium Yellowknife and towed the ship to Port Weller Dry Dock where the superstructure was removed and it was reduced to a barge. Renamed Marinelink Explorer it retained its heavy lift derricks. The tug's ownership was also transferred to Mareinlink Inc and it received a small elevated wheelhouse for visibility over the barge.
The barge did find occasional work, but  was mostly idle, and the tug as well. Other tugs were moving the grain barges more efficiently.

 In  2011 Upper Lakes laid up the tug and barge and offered them for sale. At the same time Upper Lakes sold off its cargo ship fleet, bunkering tankers and other shipping interests. Finally in 2013 Distribution Grands Lacs / St-Laurent was allowed to go into bankruptcy.
In late 2013 CAI Logistics of Moncton, NB acquired the tug and barge. CAI was the company of Chaulk Air and other freight forwarding companies with business in Labrador and the far north, but had not been shipowners. The tug was renamed Chaulk Determination and the barge Chaulk Lifter.

The years of work and layup had taken their toll on the tug's engines and it is understood that a rebuild was started but abandoned. Some work was found for the barge using hired tugs.
The tug is now leaning against its pier in Trois-Rivières, and likely to capsize, having already spilled a large quantity of its 22 tonnes of fuel. A very big mess to clean up. See a picture and read more (in French) at:


http://www.lapresse.ca/le-nouvelliste/justice-et-faits-divers/201412/26/01-4831075-un-remorqueur-coule-a-trois-rivieres.php

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Tug and barge change hands

Idle since 2010 the tug Commodore Straits and the barge Marinelink Explorer have been sold and renamed. Chaulk Determination and Chaulk Lifter respectively. The new owners are shown as a numbered New Brunswick company, but based on the new names, I assume it is connected with CAI Logistics, a Moncton based freight forwarder.

Marinelink Explorer and Commodore Straits laid up in Trois-Rivières in 2011.

Halifax Shipyards built the tug in 1966 as Haida Brave, and it sailed directly to the wast coast on completion.  In 1984 Rivtow Straits renamed the tug Commodore Straits. A subsidiary of the Upper Lakes Group bought the tug in 200x and returned it east. It went to work for Distribution Grands Lacs/St-Laurent Ltée of Trois-Rivières, QC, moving grain barges through the St.Lawrence Seaway. It is a twin screw vessel with 3700 bhp Werkspoor main engines. Smaller tugs were found to be more suitable for the grain barge work and the tug was idled for a time and transferred eventually to Jackes Shipping, a UL Group subsidiary.

In 2008 Upper Lakes established Marinelink Inc, to be a tug barge service on the Lakes and St.Lawrence River. They bought a heavy lift ship, orginally named John Henry and built in 1978 by Peterson Builders Inc of Sturgeon Bay, WI. It was a specialized shallow draft ship with bow and stern doors and a reputed 300 tonne lifting capacity. It only worked for a couple of years until it went into a 15 year layup in a controlled environment. In 2000 it emerged from its US government cocoon and was to be rebuilt as Revival but work was suspended. Marinelink renamed the ship Marinelink Explorer and Commodore Straits was dispatched to Norfolk VA and towed it to Canada.

Shortly after the photo above was taken the tug Océan Golf met the tow and assisted it up river to Trois-Rivières. In September of 2008 Commodore Straits and Radium Yellowknife towed it up through the Seaway to the Port Weller Drydock where it was reduced to a barge, with temoval of its superstructure, but it retained its heavy lift capability.

The tug and barge did get some work, including transfer of some locomotives from Becancour to Sept-Iles in 2010, but they were laid up in Trois-Rivières. In 2011 when Upper Lakes sold its Great Lakes bulk carriers, the pair were put up for sale.

CAI Logistics is involved in freight forwarding and logistics by air, sea and road. Originally based in Goose Bay, NL but now headquartered in Moncton, NB, and with connections to the Canadian north, they have chartered or used ships, tugs and barges. Founder David Chaulk and CAI were listed in 2010 as one of the fastest growing companies in Canada (4,650% in the 5 years to 2009.)

In  about 2010 CAI acquired a ship, the former Visten ex Coldstream Trader-96, ex Aldabi -93. It was a 3,987 gross ton ice class combi tanker/cargo ship, built in 1990 in the Netherlands. Renamed Chaulk Tenacity it was sent to Swansea, Wales to be refitted as a cargo ship after some time in layup. It was to become capable of carrying 253 TEU and /or general cargo and to have a pair of 20 tonne cranes.
The refit did not go well and Chaulk sued the ship yard and the project managers for incompetence. The ship is still listed in the Canadian register, with owners as Chaulk Air Inc of Moncton, but to my knowledge the ship has never entered service.

Perhaps CAI will have better luck with their new venture.

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