The latest news release and updates on alternative modes of travel due to the removal of the Northern Ranger and the failure in finding a replacement vessel is perplexing and confusing.

First WST issue this:

The following arrangements for chartered flights are now confirmed:

Mondays departing from Happy Valley-Goose Bay to ports north to Nain;
Fridays departing from Nain to ports south to Happy Valley-Goose Bay; and,
Saturdays to accommodate passengers for the ports of Black Tickle and Rigolet.
 For passengers travelling throughout the week, arrangements can be made by contacting CAI Nunatsiavut Marine Inc.

Freight shipments will be accommodated by the MV Astron, the vessel operated by Labrador Marine Inc. currently providing freight service to coastal Labrador.

Then last evening on Here&Now Tom (ever bubbly and effervescent) Hedderson added some confusion. You would have to watch the video if it comes available for the full effect.

Tom assured Debbie that whatever aircraft are needed then CAI-Nunatsiavut would supply. That could work out at a lot of twin otter flights.



The latest news released and updates on alternative modes of travel due to the removal of the Northern Ranger and the failure in finding a replacement vessel is perplexing and confusing.

Then last evening on Here&Now Tom (ever bubbly and effervescent) Hedderson added some confusion. You would have to watch the video if it comes available for the full effect.

Tom assured Debbie that whatever aircraft are needed then CAI-Nunatsiavut would supply. That could work out at a lot of twin otter flights.

Puzzling to me is that Tom said it was CAI-N whose mandate it was to find a replacement vessel, with WST assistance. CAI-N found a vessel (cruise ship) but that was deemed inadequate for the job by WST. Maybe thoughts of the Dutch Runner of last year kept running through their heads.

Tom also said it was CAI-N role to supply the air transport.

Now it may be just the way Tom uses words, or it may be some convoluted contractual arrangements between the government and CAI-N, but I always thought that it was the role of the provincial government to supply the marine shipping to the coast of Labrador.

The province did take over the two vessels, the Bond and the Ranger, from the Feds, plus the wharf infrastructure, in exchange for a big dash of cash and with the understanding the province would supply marine transport to the coast in perpetuity.

Of course the big dash of cash has long since been spent, majority of it on the Trans Labrador highway.

Now the province is short on cash, especially for Labrador projects, the south (except Black Tickle), central and west of Labrador has a link by road (such as it is) and we on the north coast are without a reliable and modern ferry and freight service.

 Just being hypothetical for a moment:
What would happen if the repair on the Ranger is bigger than let on. Say like to remove the broken gear box a hole had to be cut in the hull of the vessel. This may delay the return of the vessel to service.

What could have happened if the ever diligent (according to Tom) folks who do these things had urged the powers above to pull the Ranger out of service weeks before the actual terminal breakdown.
After all it is common knowledge that there was something very wrong.

Imagine what would have happened if the crew were pouring 40 gallons of lube into the gear box the week prior to the terminal breakdown.
Why you most likely would end up with a terminal breakdown.



Yesterday I was humbly reminded of  the way the world works.

I discovered that it is OK for crew of the Abigail Grace (AG) to walk around town drunk and drinking in public and acting like immature teenagers in the streets because local people do it.

It is Ok for crew of the AG to be disrespectful to residence and the town because they, AG, bring a lot of money to the town.

It is not OK for me to write about these incidents that I see because I did not see the incident of some local folk untying the lines from the dock to the AG.

It is not OK for me to be proud and concerned for my community and write about it or go to the council and tell them my concerns of the immature and disrespectful attitude of crew of AG, of the polluting the harbor with empty beer cans and me pointing this out to crew of the AG.

No siree, if I do these things I will be accosted in the public streets by two crew of the AG and threatened to be sued if I persist in writing and expressing myself in this blasphemous manner.