The Canadian Coast Guard Ship W.E. Ricker sits in Nanaimo waters, awaiting dismantling after being removed from active service in 2017. (Alex Rawnsley/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Alex Rawnsley

PIECE BY PIECE

Decommissioned Coast Guard ship being dismantled at Nanaimo marina

Nov 24, 2021 | 5:33 AM

NANAIMO — It’s the end of an era, one bolt at a time.

The W.E. Ricker is slowly being dismantled at Canadian Maritime Engineering Ltd., just north of the Townsite Marina.

The Canadian Coast Guard told NanaimoNewsNOW the process will continue through until the end of February 2022, with the 43-year-old vessel having weight removed from it gradually by removing deck equipment and other structures while afloat.

“Once the desired weight reduction is achieved, the vessel will be loaded onto the marine railway and removed from the water. It will then be stabilized in position,” a spokesperson from the Canadian Coast Guard said.

After removal from the water, the ship will be hot water washed and the interior gutted, including all wiring.

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Crews will then deconstruct the ship in pieces, locating, safely removing and disposing of any hazardous materials.

Remaining steel chunks will be sent to a local recycling company.

The W.E. Ricker was decommissioned by Coast Guard in March 2017. Until recently, it was floating in Patricia Bay near Victoria International Airport.

The vessel itself was built in 1978 and was initially a fishing trawler. In 1984, it was purchased by the government and converted into a fisheries research vessel and re-christened the W.E. Ricker.

It spans roughly 58 metres in length and is 9.5 metres wide.

The ship was named after William Edwin Ricker, who died in 2001 in Nanaimo.

He was one of the founders of fisheries sciences and is credited for the ‘Ricker model’, which helps predict the number of fish in a fishery.

Ricker, born in 1908, grew up in Waterloo, ON and was presented the Order of Canada in 1986 for his work in the field, including at the Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo.

The CGCS W.E. Ricker was replaced in the Coast Guard fleet by the Offshore Fisheries Science Vessel CGCS Sir John Franklin.

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alex@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @alexrawnsley