The state of Emergency Towing

1. The tug Hellas in happier times. Towing the Canadian Mariner on the St.Lawrence River, with the tug Avantage on the stern, off St-Fidèle, QC, 2007-08-17.

2. Would a rescue tug have made a difference? Abeille Languedoc, one of the French rescue tugs, seen here off St-Malo, 2000-05-17. Even bigger tugs have since been added to the fleet.

The Province of Nova Scotia has arrested the tug Hellas in Sydney, NS in order to secure a bond or other instrument to cover the potential cost of removing and remediating the wreck of the former Great Lakes bulk carrier Miner.

Hellas had the bulker under tow for Turkey to be scrapped when the line parted in bad weather and the ship ran ashore September 20 on Scatarie Island, at the northeast corner of Cape Breton Island. Since that time Mammoet, appointed as salvors by the tug owners, have removed some fuel oil and ballast waste from the ship.

The ship has received storm damage since grounding and there is now legitimate doubt about whether it can be removed intact, or will have to be broken up in situ.

The press and enthusiast websites are rife with speculation on the topic, and of course at this point it is a matter of wait and see. Press reports indicate that no pollution has been detected, and this is not surprising, since there was no fuel aboard save that to run a lighting generator.

The grounding site is a sensitive ecological zone and a Provincial nature reserve. Thus the Province of Nova Scotia has an interest beyond the normal Federal government interest.

I have written on the Shipfax blog about the Federal government's response.

Over the years a number of scrap tows have been lost en route and that should not be surprising, since the ships were old and not intended for deep sea voyages. That more of them have not been lost is perhaps a tribute to the tug crews. We do not know how many have been adrift for periods of time during the transatlantic voyages, but there have been several, including one in the Gulf of St.Lawrence last year. Most have been recovered and reached the destination - usually Turkey.

Some questions have been asked about tug availability during the time that Miner was adrift. The tug Hellas was not able to re-establish a tow line, and when the ship finally did go ashore, was not able to pull it off. Would a rescue tug have made a difference?

Today's reality is that "rescue" tugs do not exist in Canada. Tugs in eastern Canada are usually under contract and cannot drop what they are doing. Even if they could do so, they are not fitted for salvage work. There are also relatively few such tugs in the area. In fact there are only two deep sea tugs in eastern Canada: Ryan Leet (8800 bhp, based in Halifax) and Ocean Delta (5600 bhp, based in Quebec City). The normal 4,000 bhp to 5,000 bhp harbour tugs have some capability at sea, but would be hard pressed in severe conditions.

Even the multi-purpose anchor handling supply vessels used in the oil industry are rare in Nova Scotia these days. There are several working off Newfoundland, but they are many miles away from the Nova Scotia coast, and are fully booked.

In the UK right now there is a big hue and crew regarding the Coast Guard standby tugs. The government decided to withdraw this service as a cost cutting measure, and one of the tugs was sold. I hear that they have had second thoughts and may have put the cuts on hold now, due to public pressure. Nevertheless it is an expensive business to keep tugs on standby, ready for emergency. In the UK, France, Holland and Germany there are almost a dozen such tugs. Spain probably has almost as many itself (of varying sizes) but one has to remember that the density of ship traffic, particularly tankers, is intense in the Channel and North Sea, and the risk of accident is much higher. The history of accidents is also horrific, and the need for dedicated rescue tugs is hard to deny.

Here on the east coast of Canada ship traffic is minuscule compared to western Europe, and the chances of an accident with serious pollution or threat to life is much, much lower. Shipping activity is spread thinly over a wide area, with only a few "choke points" such as the Cabot Strait.

However should this be the basis for our government not providing some sort of emergency response capability?

It is all very well for the authorities to expect the towing tug to recover its lost tow, but in the event that that the tug itself is disabled, where would another tug come from? And how long would it take to get there?

What would happen in the event of a collision or grounding of a ship that had no attendant tug - who would respond?

In today's world the experienced salvage companies do not maintain salvage stations as they once did. They fly people and equipment to the site of casualties (and do so very quickly) but rely on locally sourced tugs when they need them, hired on a daily rate.

If a salvor needed a 10,000 bhp tug in Nova Scotia today, none would be available. Period. The nearest source might be Europe unless one of the oil industry vessels could be spared.

My proposal is that the Canadian government station salvage and rescue tugs in Sydney, NS and Yarmouth, NS, with a third tug based in Halifax and able to roam. It should be available for summer in the arctic, since there are no tugs there either (they had to send one from Quebec City two years ago.)

These should be dedicated 10,000 bhp plus tugs, able to tow anything that sails in Canadian waters and should not be sent off on hydrographic surveys or fishery patrols. If built to modern standards of energy efficiency they should not be costly to operate. Yes they will cost bucks to build, but no insurance is free.

I would also be surprised if any of them was called out in an emergency more than once a year. The question then is can they be justified or not. As insurance against the inevitable I say we can't afford not to have them.

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US tugs to Nigeria

Marcon International has just announced the sale of two US tugs to Nigeria. Both tugs are based in Tampa, FL and are operated by OSG. OSG took over the fleet of Maritrans Operating Partners in 2006, which in turn took over SONAT which took over Interstate in 1987, but which has roots that go way back. See this excellent summary: http://www.tugboatinformation.com/company.cfm?id=57.

Both tugs date from 1971 and were built by Maine Iron Works of Houma, LA, and fitted with EMD engines. These are probably outdated now, but they sound great!

OSG Seafarer ex Seafarer is a 5750 bhp tug with an elevated wheelhouse. This device has been modified and raised at least twice. According to Marcon it now has a height of eye of 55 feet.

OSG Liberty ex Liberty ex Satoco is a 7200 bhp tug. Its elevated wheeelhouse has been raised again since my 1992 photo and now gives a height of eye of 57 feet. It was built for Sabine Towing and Transportation and bought by Interstate in 1985.

Seafarer was the unfortunate tug in charge of the barge Ocean 255, loaded with avgas, when it was in collision with Balsa 37 resulting in a huge fire in Tampa Bay August 10, 1993.

The Maritrans tugs were always maintained in tip top condition, and had shipyard refits regularly, where they were sandblasted primed and repainted. It is no wonder then that they are still operating 40 years on.

See: www.marcon.com for more.

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Neftegaz 29 a target?

1. Intrepid Sea a.k.a. Neftegaz 29 , is guided from Bedford Basin to pier 9 this afternoon.

2. The tug arrived in Halifax in 2001 in tow of Topaz. Even Russian tugs in service can look like derelicts.

3. Tugs moved Neftegaz 29 in 2002 (her official name was Sable Sea at the time.)

One of a large fleet of supply/pipe carriers built for the USSR in Poland, the former Neftegaz 29 moved today from its longtime layup position in Bedford Basin. Atlantic Oak and Atlantic Larch moved the old vessel as a dead ship to pier 9.

Built in 1984 by Stoc. im. Konuny Paryskiej in Gdynia, Poland it was one of 55 vessels of its class. Reportedly built of excellent steel, with ice capabilities, the ships were of an obsolete design, and some were laid up on delivery.

Secunda Marine Services of Dartmouth acquired four vessels of the class, Neftegaz numbers 1, 2, 14 and 29. Numbers 1 and 2 were converted to the tug suppliers Burin Sea and Trinity Sea. Number 14 was transformed in to Panuke Sea.

Number 29 arrived in Halifax November 15, 2001 in tow of the Russian tug Topaz. Even then it was apparent that the ship has been laid up for some time. Although there was some activity on board in 2002 and again 2003 when one of her engines was removed for use on a sister vessel, she has spent most of the last 10 years laid up at Secunda's (formerly Gulf Oil's) Burnside pier in Bedford Basin. Now that all useful parts have probably been removed for re-use, she is pretty much in derelict condition and there is evidence of vandalism.

Shortly after Secunda acquired the ship they renamed it Sable Sea, but in 2002 this was changed to Intrepid Sea to free up the name for another supplier. Neither of these names has ever been painted on the ship.

In 2007 ownership of Secunda was taken over by McDermott, but there were no outward signs of change in the company.

Today's move may mean the end for the ship. We will soon discover if she is going to be sold to the navy for use as a target (most likely scenario in my mind), sold for scrap or even (unlikely) rebuilt.

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Just Visiting

1. Point Halifax ties up at the IEL dock this morning with the deck barge Atlantic Swordfish. The Atlantic Larch returns in the background.

2. A brand new Point Halifax, as seen from the wheelhouse of the Point Vibert (now Florence M.) 1987-02-08. She is painted in the colours of Smit & Cory.

After more than a year's absence, the tug Point Halifax returned to Halifax, but it is still just visiting. (It was here one other time, but only handed off a tow and did not enter port or tie up.)

Built in 1986, Point Halifax was the first ASD tug to be based here, and was the prime harbour tug for many years. Powered by two English Electric engines (Ruston) it was rated at 4200 bhp and 62 tonnes bollard pull. At the time this was considered to be quite powerful for a harbour tug, and so it proved to be until the 5,000 bhp tugs came in.

Eastern Canada Towing Ltd ordered the tug when it was still part of the Smit & Cory organization. After numerous changes in that arrangement, they are now owned by Svitzer Canada.

In July 2010 the three Halifax-based Svitzer tugs were transferred to Point Tupper. Point Halifax however was under repair at the time and when it was ready to go, it was transferred to Port Hawksbury and chartered to Atlantic Towing Ltd. It is in their service that it arrived this morning towing the barge Atlantic Swordfish.

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More small tug work

1. Carl M. works with the spud scow Canadian Argosy.

2. Whitby follows.

No big tug news to report at the moment, but the small tugs are keeping busy in Halifax. McNally Marine's Carl M. and fleet mate Whitby continue to attend construction scows at the Halterm extension project.

Both tugs trace there existance to McNamara Construction, long defunct, builders of the orginal Halterm container terminal IN 1969-70.

Carl M. was built in 1957 by Russel-Hipwell in Owen Sound, ON as Louis M. She was renamed in 1975, and rates 465 bhp.

Whitby dates from 1978 and has 474 horses at her command. She was built by McNamara's own forces in her namesake port.

Both tugs are truckable, and their wheelhouses are removable.

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Little Tugs: dirty job, but somebody has to do it.

1. Following up on the Armchair Captain's photo of Gulf Spray with the garbage barge on Monday and my own of the same tug with barge alongside Le Boreal last week, here is even smaller fleet mate Carly J also with a garbage barge. September 18.
All refuse coming off cruise ships is considered international garbage, and must be incinerated. Local garbage (in Halifax at least) is composted, recycled or land filled. During cruise season, when there are several large ships in port, there is a veritable mountain of garbage coming ashore, which does not enter the domestic "waste stream."

2. Gulf Spray works alongside Silver Whisper at pier 20, also September 18.

LeGrow's Marine handles most of the debris, and mobilizes itssmall fleet to do the job. The garbage is removed on the offside of the ship (to avoid the possibility that passengers will be be offended by their own garbage!) and barged to shore, usually at pier 29, where it is then trucked to the incinerator.

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Roseway Returns

Dominion Diving's tug Roseway returned to Halifax late this afternoon after a summer working in Shelburne. In tow was the former La Have river cable ferry La Have II now used as a work barge.

Roseway was built in 1960 in Liverpool, NS by Steel and Engine Products for the (Federal)Minister of Public Works and assigned to the dredging fllet. Usually working out of Liverpool, but ranging up and down the Nova Scotia coasts, it tended a pair of small mud scows and the dredge D.P.W.No. 16 in the maintenance of numerous small harbours. Measuring only 36 gross tons, it was fitted with two engines generating 300 bhp.

As DPW began to exit the dredging scene, the tug was acquired by Dominion Diving in 1989.

In 1991 as it was returning to port it began to take on water and sank just off the IEL wharf in 60 feet of water. The next day (December 24) the tug/workboats Saint M, Little Saint and barge Coneco III lifted the tug off the bottom and moved it alongside the IEL dock. It was then raised by shore crane and taken to Dartmouth Marine Slip. There was very little damage except to the the electricals and electronics, which were replaced. The tug was back in service in 2 months, and later in 1992 was re-powered by Rolls Royce engines totalling 420 bhp.

The tug had provided sterling service as a tug, diving tender, workboat, crew boat, lineboat and any other job that Dominion has had for it.

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