Northern-Sea-Wolf

The "Northern Sea Wolf" was delayed on the northern Discovery Coast Connector route, responding to a float plane crash north of Port Hardy on July 26, 2019. The ferry joined the Coast Guard, as well as other boats, in responding to the crash. The float plane, operated by Seair Seaplanes, had been headed to Calvert Island. The RCMP received a call around 11 a.m. that the plane had crashed near Addenbroke Island, about 100 kilometres north of Port Hardy. Four people died in the crash, while five passengers survived. The ferry’s proximity to the plane crash, along with the fact that there were doctors on board who were ready to assist if necessary, were factors in the Northern Sea Wolf’s change of course. The "Northern Sea Wolf" was travelling the Port Hardy to Bella Coola route, usually scheduled to take 10 hours and arrive at 5:30 p.m. Due to the response, the ferry instead arrived around 10 p.m. There were no further current service delays on BC Ferry routes as a result of the incident. An investigation by the Transportation Safety Board was being conducted into what caused the accident.

The new ferry between Bella Coola and Port Hardy will be starting up on Saturday, said the British Columbia Ferry Services Inc (BC Ferries) According to a news release , the Northern Sea Wolf will begin service on the Central Coast route on May 18, after finishing sea trials and dock fits during April and May. Built in 2000, the vessel was bought in Greece in 2017 after the province announced it was reviving the route that had been cancelled in 2013. The corporation says the Northern Sea Wolf has finished sea trials and dock fits successfully in April and May in Port Hardy, Bella Bella, Bella Coola, Shearwater and Ocean Falls.

BC Ferries’ newest vessel, Northern Sea Wolf, will undergo an upgrade at Esquimalt Drydock from December 2017 to April 2018. BC Ferries has awarded two major contracts to Esquimalt, which is located in British Columbia, Canada. The first is a CA$2 million (US$1.55 million) docking contract for underwater components. BC Ferries will also award approximately CA$18 million further to Esquimalt and other local contractors and suppliers for the interior and safety upgrades. BC Ferries expects Northern Sea Wolf to arrive in British Columbia this week after a 10,097 nautical mile journey from Athens, Greece. The upgrade will include interior and exterior painting, overhauling the propulsion engines and gearboxes, installing new electrical generators, upgrading the switchboards, installing new navigational equipment, and upgrading shipboard safety equipment and systems.