In the empty cavern that once held the vertical launch system - the chief fighting power of the former HMCS Huron, all that remains are a few metal remnants, cabling, and the welded over hole in the deck head, which was cut to pull the four massive launchers from the ship."We've removed about 2,000 tons of stuff," says LCdr Garry Hansen, shining his flashlight from the gaping hole to the barren passageway, strung with dim, temporary lighting because the fluorescents have all been removed. His voice echoes off the empty bulkheads. LCdr Hansen is the guardian of Huron until disposal. His office is a warehouse on D-jetty with a view of the once powerful destroyer.
What is left to come off the 34-year-old warship before it can be disposed are the miles of cables that run end to end throughout each deck, much of which has valuable copper wiring. This last phase of gutting Huron and ridding it of any hazardous material is currently in the process of being put out to tender for a civilian contract. By the end of March, Huron as a unit will disappear. A handful of sailors, including LCdr Hansen, will remain to "shepherd the environmental phase." After that, it will undergo scrutiny by Environment Canada to ensure it's clean.
Huron was officially scratched off the Canadian warship inventory March 31, 2005, after five years of sitting idle. Her hull number— DDH 281—was painted over right after the decommissioning ceremony as a sign that it no longer serves the Canadian Navy. In anticipation of the decommissioning and imminent disposal,
Huron's skeleton crew removed what they could, including lockers and filing cabinets.Piece by piece Huron has been whittled down to the bare metal. During its stay at Victoria Shipyard last summer, all the major "heavy lift and docking dependent" items were unbolted, taken off, cleaned of hazardous material and returned to the supply chain.
The Vertical Launch System was shrink-wrapped and sent to the Montreal depot, where it remains as a spare for the other three operational Iroquois Class ships. Pretty much all the equipment removed has either been recycled into other warships or returned to stores as spare parts. Even many of the ship's hatches and doors have been cut off, placed in rows on D jetty, awaiting a truck ride to Base Logistics.
LCdr Hansen's team estimates about 10,000 items in total have been catalogued and shipped to stores, most of which will be kept in "repairable reserves". A lot of the Iroquois Class equipment is no longer being manufactured; so if an item is needed, it can be pulled from the reserves, repaired and used in another destroyer. To maintain the ship's stability as Huron grew lighter, LCdr Hansen says they filled the fuel tanks with water.
Before the environmental assessment, one by one each tank will be drained of the water, which will be treated as hazardous material, cleaned and refilled again to keep the ship stable. The end plan for Huron is a Sinking Exercise (SINKEX) next year off Vancouver Island. To do this, Maritime Forces Pacific is working with Environment Canada to conform to existing environmental legislation, and to obtain a permit for the SINKEX. A SINKEX is uncharted territory for the navy. The Artificial Reef Society prepared the other warships that found their way to the ocean's floor.
While it has been a "superbly interesting job," the end is in sight, says LCdr Hansen. He isn't too sentimental about Huron's fate. "The bottom line, it's a cycle every ship goes through."
Source: Lookout News, Vol 50, No. 14. April 4, 2005