Sub stops in Port Colborne
By EDDIE CHAU/Tribune Staff
PORT COLBORNE — Submarines are meant to be underwater, out of the public eye.
But when a submarine is found above water, it's not hard to garner attention ... especially when it's traveling down the Welland Canal.
Many Port Colborne residents lined Wharf 12 just north of Bridge 19, the Jacknife Bridge, Monday morning to get a glimpse of Olympus, a decommissioned submarine once used by the Canadian Department of National Defense.
The 1,250-tonne vessel had to make a stop in Port Colborne Monday for a day or two before heading towards its final destination in Port Maitland, where its metal will be recycled by Marine Recycling Corp. at the company's shipyard.
"It's not too often you see one of these out of water," said Wayne Elliott, Marine Recycling Corp's director of business development. "The navy once used this for training. It had been sitting in Halifax for 20 years. I looked at it eight years ago when it was decommissioned and it took that long that long just to get them here."
Traveling from Halifax, the Olympus was sitting in Hamilton, waiting for the right time to be transported to Port Maitland. While in Hamilton the submarine was re-floated and placed on a barge for its transit through the canal.
When it arrives in Port Maitland, the submarine will be recycled.
"Every last bit will be used," Elliott said.
The $4.5 million recycling project is expected to be completed in three months, Elliott said.
Some of the challenges to recycling the submarine will be getting into the Olympus itself and maneuvering around. With all the machinery inside, it will be a tight fit, Elliott said.
Elliott said the age of the metal is not a concern because metal is "infinitely recyclable."
"It can be another 100 years old and it can still be recycled, as long as it doesn't rust away," Elliott said.
While much of the metal will be recycled, some parts of the Olympus as well as Okanagan, another submarine to pass through Port Colborne, will be preserved.
Marine Recycling Corp. plans on putting the tops of the submarines on display at Derek Point Memorial Gardens. The submarine parts will be part of a vessel exhibit, which will be dedicated to local business leaders and honour the Canadian Navy.
— with files from Maryanne Firth
Twitter: @EdChauTribune
