Veteran dredge rebuilt

The veteran dredge Rosaire was rebuilt and renamed (in 2012) by Dragage Océan DSM Inc of Quebec City. Part of the large Groupe Océan tug, dredging, marine construction and shipbuilding conglomerate, Dragage Océan (Ocean Dredging) acquired Rosaire early in 2012 along with almost all the assets of Dragage Verreault when that company was declared bankrupt. (The trailing suction hopper dredge Port Méchins was not included in the sale, but I understand it was sold for scrap in Mexico.)

Built in 1952 by then Saint John Drydock Co Ltd in East Saint John. NB, for the Minister of Public Works, Rosaire was originally named P.W.D. No. 21 and measured 609 grt. The J.P.Porter Co acquired the unit in the 1960s and renamed it  JPP No.530. Following the wind up of J.P.Porter in 1979, Verreault Navigation Inc bought the dredge. By this time its tonnage had increased to 714, possibly due to additional living quarters installed on the upper deck. In 2000 Verreault Navigation spun off the dredging fleet from its shipyard and ownership became Dragage Verreault.

1. Rosaire doing maintenance dredging at Rivière-du-Loup, WC in 1994, attended by IV. No.11 and I.V.No.13 the unique craft invented by Borromée Verreault.

2. Arriving in Halifax in 1994, shepherded by the same two hopper boats that also served as tugs.

The dredge worked on the St.Lawrence River, Saint John, NB and other ports in eastern Canada until laid up in Meteghan. It was not in great shape when Océan bought it, but it was apparently worth rebuilding. The work was done during the summer of 2012 at Quebec City and at Industrie Océan, the group's shipyard in Ile-aux-Coudres, QC, and went in to service in 2012 with a new Liebherr crane..

Interestingly the new name selected for the dredge is Océan Borromée-Verreault in commemmoration of the founder of Verreault Navigation. A dynamic personality by all accounts, Capt.Verreault was one of the early winter navigators on the St.Lawrence and revolutionized dredging with the use of self-propelled hopper boats, which Océan also acquired and rebuilt for further service.

3. As rebuilt, the deck house has been cut back to make room for a large crane.

4. The dredge now has a new control station, which looks like a ship's wheelhouse. 

5. The stern was modified and a new bed was installed for the large Liebherr crane.

6. The dredge was dried out on the mud at Ile-aux-Coudres in early August.

The rebuilt dredge was still in layup with the windows shuttered at least until August this year, but is again at work.



For previous blog postings on Dragage Verreault see:

http://shipfax.blogspot.ca/2012/04/dredging-shakeup.html

http://shipfax.blogspot.ca/2012/04/dredge-up-date.html

http://shipfax.blogspot.ca/2012/04/verreault-dredging-latest-news.html

For more on Borromée Verreault consult:
http://www.encyclobec.ca/main.php?docid=142
The Verreault company website appears to be under construction, but it is available in English and French at:
http://www.verreaultnavigation.com/#!home/c1ct6

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Dredge up date

The dredge Rosaire and hopper boat I.V.No.14 got away from Meteghan on April 18 in tow of the tug André H. By the time the flotilla reached the Strait of Canso they had been a problem with the hopper boat, which had taken on a severe list to starboard. (see also Tugfax.) Repairs were underway in Mulgrave on Saturday April 21.

Thanks to comments from readers, it should be noted that I.V.No.9 and I.V.No.10 remain in Meteghan River at the time of writing and will probably form a second transport later on.

These unique hopper boats have an extremely interesting history.

They were built to carry newsprint from Quebec to New York City via the Richelieu and Hudson Rivers. The Richelieu canals dictated their size, including water draft and air draft due to low overhead clearances. The brain child of a man named Guy Toombs, they rejuvenated a long dormant form of transport between the two countries. The fleet was built in 1936-37 by G.T.Davie & Sons Ltd in Lauzon, QC and operated by a subsidiary called Davie Transportation. They were built in two lots. The first for their own account and the second for Quebec Paper Sales & Transportation. They loaded paper in such places as Donnacona, QC, but also on the Ottawa River. They then sailed along the St.Lawrence to Sorel where they took the Richelieu River south to Lake Champlain, joining the Hudson River via the New York State canal system all the way to New York.

By the late 1960s they had become outmoded and Verreault Navigation acquired at least six of the boats. In the end they converted five of them and remarkably all are still in service.

The conversion involved all new accommodation and propulsion, and rebuilding of the cargo hold to hopper space for dredging spoil. The bottom of the hull was fitted with hydraulic doors which could open to dump the spoil. Side tanks and bow space became buoyancy chambers which ensured that the boats remained in balance at all times. It is apparent from the photos of I.V.No.14 that there has been a failure somewhere, likely brought on by deterioration after several years in layup.

It is quite amazing that these 75 year old hulls, now more than 40 years after rebuilding, are still going.

2. to 6. A series of photos taken at Meteghan River April 14, 1971. The boats had completed working at Yarmouth and were refitting before going on to Saint John.

See the excellent coverage on http://bayferryman.blogspot.ca/ for more current photos, in the same area.

I have many photos of these craft at work, most often at Rivière-du-Loup, QC, where sand is washed in to the ferry dock every year by the spring freshet. Snow melting in the Laurentians floods down river well into summer and dredging can't begin until it eases down in July. The sand is dredged up, and moved to a dumping ground downstream, where it will not wash back in. But there is always fresh sand next year!   



7. Loaded boat gets away as empty comes alongside Rosaire.



8. Loaded and empty



9. Deck washed down, loaded boat gets away.



7. to 9. Working off Rivière-du-Loup, July 4, 1994.

10. to 12. Same place, July 1, 2004.



10. The boat's hold is loaded with sand. Some sand has spilled onto the foredeck.



11. A bucket full of water is dumped to wash down the deck..



12. Boat gets away for the dumping grounds