A barge has partially sunk near the Canadian Fishing Company dock in Port Hardy.
The Canadian Coast Guard said it received a report of the sinking at noon on Sunday. A member of the coast guard’s Port Hardy crew conducted an initial assessment that indicated the water has not been polluted.
The barge is owned by Canfisco — part of the Jim Pattison Group — which has begun mobilizing salvage contractors to inspect it using divers. The company plans to refloat the barge, the coast guard said.
No injuries were reported in the sinking.
Calls to Canfisco in Port Hardy and Vancouver were not immediately returned on Monday.
The coast guard said the barge, which has a crane on its platform, is anchored to the shoreline and may be sitting on the sea bottom.
“It is not a hazard to navigation nor is there a threat to other infrastructure,” a coast guard statement said. “[We] will be working with the barge owner to ensure an appropriate response.
It’s the second barge sinking in a week in the Port Hardy area.
A 110-foot-long barge equipped with a crane sank in Christie Passage off Hurst Island north of Port Hardy last Monday.
The unloaded barge owned by Central Coast Marine Services in Port Hardy sank 337 metres to the ocean floor. No injuries were reported.
