The tragic loss of a life in the sinking of the workboat Captain Jim on January 29 has thrown a shadow over the waterfront community in Halifax. The several companies that work on the water would have known the boat and its owners well.
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The company, RMI Marine has operated the Captain Jim in a variety of roles around the harbour for many years. The boat was named for Jim Ritcy a co-founder of Dominion Diving and the father of RMI's owner, who was also skipper on the boat the night it sank. He and a cargo surveyor survived by escaping to a life raft. The deckhand however was not able to escape the sinking. After an intensive search and rescue operation, the boat was located in about 12m of water and the deckhand's body was recovered.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is investigating the incident and no decision has been made as to whether the boat will be raised.
Built in 1989 by Guimond's Boats Ltd in Baie Ste-Anne, NB, the Captain Jim's lines were typical of fishing boats on the Northumberland Strait.
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The unbroken sheer line, flared bow and beaked stem are typical of Northumberland Strait boats.
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The FRP hull was finished however as a crew / workboat and named Atantic Walnut by first owners, Atlantic Towing Ltd. They used the boat in Saint John as a workboat and for personnel transfers. RMI Marine acquired the boat for use as a diving tender, workboat and for any other tasks that were needed on the water.
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Some of those were tug work, such as moving construction barges during the Big Lift project on the Angus L. Macdonald bridge.
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At the time of its loss it was returning from a tanker at the outer anchorages after a cargo sampling assignment conducted by the surveyor.
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The company, RMI Marine has operated the Captain Jim in a variety of roles around the harbour for many years. The boat was named for Jim Ritcy a co-founder of Dominion Diving and the father of RMI's owner, who was also skipper on the boat the night it sank. He and a cargo surveyor survived by escaping to a life raft. The deckhand however was not able to escape the sinking. After an intensive search and rescue operation, the boat was located in about 12m of water and the deckhand's body was recovered.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada is investigating the incident and no decision has been made as to whether the boat will be raised.
Built in 1989 by Guimond's Boats Ltd in Baie Ste-Anne, NB, the Captain Jim's lines were typical of fishing boats on the Northumberland Strait.
The engine is amidships with a large open, self draining deck, with a towing bit.
The boat's bow flare and lines were revealed when it was hauled out for a refit.
The FRP hull was finished however as a crew / workboat and named Atantic Walnut by first owners, Atlantic Towing Ltd. They used the boat in Saint John as a workboat and for personnel transfers. RMI Marine acquired the boat for use as a diving tender, workboat and for any other tasks that were needed on the water.
Some of those were tug work, such as moving construction barges during the Big Lift project on the Angus L. Macdonald bridge.
At the time of its loss it was returning from a tanker at the outer anchorages after a cargo sampling assignment conducted by the surveyor.
