Sunken tugboat partially raised
VANCOUVER — Salvage crews managed to partially raise a sunken tug from the Fraser River off Vancouver on Wednesday before the salvage operation was put on hold for the evening.
The B.C. government said the pause would allow for the adjustment of rigging, arrival of a barge to contain water pumped from the tug, and details to be finalized with the facility that will be receiving the tug.
The Canadian Coast Guard and Western Canada Marine Response Corporation were to keep vessels on the scene overnight to monitor a containment boom around the tug and provide any necessary adjustments.
A larger crane and barge, with specialized crews, had to be brought in to help bring the George H Ledcor tug from the bottom of the river.
Coast guard spokesman Dan Bate said initially that the tug was to be lifted Wednesday morning, but that was delayed until slack tide.
The tug, operated by Ledcor, was hauling a loaded gravel barge when it went down Monday night, although the cause is unclear.
The vessel has the capacity to carry 22,000 litres of diesel fuel, but Bate said it’s unclear how much was in its fuel tank.
Ledcor spokesman David Hoff said via email that divers managed to seal off the fuel tanks Tuesday afternoon and as much as 600 litres of fuel has been recovered from the site so far.
Bate said the flow of the fuel release slowed significantly after the divers were able to cap the fuel tanks.
The province said a light sheen was seen on the water downstream on the south side of the Fraser River.
It was expected to dissipate naturally and no cleanup action was required.