1. Rowan M. McAllister steams west in the Kill van Kull of New York harbour. The photo was taken from the Staten Island side.
2. Later in the day, returning from Newark Bay, the tug steams east.The New York tug Rowan M. McAllister has been sent to the Great Lakes to tow a damaged fleet mate back to New York.
The tug Patrice McAllister, acquired over the winter, is the former Cleveland. It was built in 1999 by C&G Boat Works, Bayou la Batre, LA as James Palladino, a name it carried until 2004. An attractive twin screw tug, with Cummins engines giving 4930 bhp to twin screws,[see comment below] it towed the aptly named barge Cleveland Rocks until 2010 when there was no more work for the pair. A spring refit readied the tug to sail out of layup in Cleveland for New York under its new name.
On March 27 an engine room fire off Prince Edward Pt, ON gutted most of the accommodation and wheelhouse and injured the engineer. Although he was airlifted to Belleville, ON and later Toronto, ON his life could not be saved.
The tug Bowditch out of Clayton, NY towed the burnt out tug to Clayton.
Since the incident occurred in Canadian waters to a US flag vessel, both Canadian and US transportation safety boards are investigating the cause.
Damage is apparently repairable, and so McAllister dispatched the Rowan M. McAllister out of New York City, to make the long trek via the east coast, St.Lawrence and Seaway to fetch the Patrice McAllister.
Rowan M. McAllister was built in 1981 in Blountstown RI by RYSCO Shipyards Inc as Dolly S. McAllister. It was part of the Hvide fleet as Vigilant from 1989 to 1999 when it returned to McAllister. It a twin screw tug powered by a pair of GM EMDs totaling 4900bhp.
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