THUNDER BAY – The City of Thunder Bay is seeking proposals from local companies to raise the historic James Whalen tugboat out of the Kam River, where it sank from its moorings at the Kam River Heritage Park early Sunday morning.
The sinking – the second incident in which the boat has taken on water while berthed at the park in little over a year – prompted Mayor Bill Mauro to request a report on the situation at Monday’s city council meeting.
“It is unfortunately necessary, we have to say that this is the second time we’ve had this issue with this particular tug in this particular park,” he said Monday. “Obviously we can’t let this happen again.”
The report shows the city had not yet reinstalled a submersible pump added after the 2021 incident for the spring season, attributing that to consistent cold temperatures.
The pump was removed before winter freeze-up to avoid damage, and was to be installed “as soon as possible” in the spring.
The parks department had tried to install the pump once earlier this year, but found the sump in the tug was still frozen, said parks and open spaces manager Cory Halvorsen in the report.
Warming temperatures and rain appear to have resulted in a quick thaw and the James Whalen taking on a significant amount of water sometime Saturday night or early Sunday morning, the report concluded. The tug was observed upright as late as Saturday evening at 7:30 p.m.
Its sinking isn’t expected to pose any environmental risk, as the boat was previously emptied of engine components, the report stated, though floating booms were installed as a precaution. The city has contacted Transport Canada and the Coast Guard to inform them of the incident.
The city is now soliciting proposals to lift the tug out of the Kaministiquia River from local companies, Halvorsen reported. The plan is for the boat to be moved to storage on dry land where it can be assessed for damage.
If it’s still in adequate condition, several city councillors expressed support Monday for a plan to move the tug to the Lakehead Transportation Museum Society site at Pool 6, south of Prince Arthur's Landing.
It’s an outcome the society has welcomed, holding meetings this year with the city's waterfront development committee to discuss arrangements.
Mauro suggested that would be a win-win for the society and the city.
“When I see people in the community that are willing to do work that benefits the city and are basically asking for next to nothing, I think it’s incumbent on me and on any of us to try to facilitate that,” he said.
Society president Charlie Brown has expressed optimism the sinking won’t necessarily have caused further damage to the ship, which he said would have required an overhaul for display in any case.
Coun. Aldo Ruberto said he plans to bring a resolution forward over the summer to propose an agreement with the LTMS.
