Vancouver developer Howard Meakin has owned the famed Expo 86-era floating McDonaldB次元官网网址檚 restaurant vessel known as the McBarge for decades, and despite its outward appearance, by no means is it derelict, he says.
The vessel was made famous during the 1986 World Exposition in Vancouver as a floating McDonaldB次元官网网址檚 restaurant, though the vessel official name was the B次元官网网址淔riendship 500.B次元官网网址�
Meakin said he was surprised to learn in recent media reports that the vessel appeared on the federal governmentB次元官网网址檚 national inventory of wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels.
It has since been removed from the Canadian Coast GuardB次元官网网址檚 list.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 just ridiculous because itB次元官网网址檚 never been abandoned,B次元官网网址� Meakin said in an interview. B次元官网网址淭he hull is in pristine condition. WeB次元官网网址檝e had it surveyed and itB次元官网网址檚 concrete, the hull is concrete. It has a life expectancy of probably well over 100 years.B次元官网网址�
Up until 2019, it wasnB次元官网网址檛 even illegal in Canada to abandon a boat in the countryB次元官网网址檚 waters, and now the Canadian Coast Guard is working its way through the inventory, armed with the power to fine owners of hazardous vessels that threaten marine environments or public safety.
So far, only one vesselB次元官网网址檚 owner has been issued a fine under Wrecked, Abandoned or Hazardous Vessels Act.
The coast guardB次元官网网址檚 list of wrecks now has nearly 1,500 entries, roughly two thirds of which are in British Columbia, but the agency cautions that all the vessels listed arenB次元官网网址檛 B次元官网网址渧erified and confirmed by the Government of Canada.B次元官网网址�
Robert Brooks, the agencyB次元官网网址檚 director of marine environmental and hazards response, said in an interview that the list was launched in November 2022, and since 2017 more than 550 problem vessels have been removed from Canadian waters.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e working every day to refine the accuracy of the national inventory,B次元官网网址� Brooks said.
In July, the Coast Guard updated the list and removed around 200 entries, and Brooks said the agency is working through the B次元官网网址渟ignificant case volume,B次元官网网址� and welcomes public comments about potential inaccuracies on the list.
The McBarge is no longer on the list, nor is the Queen of Sidney, a former BC Ferries vessel sold off in 2002.
That vesselB次元官网网址檚 owner, Langley, B.C., resident Gerald Tapp eventually renamed the boat B次元官网网址淏ad Adventure,B次元官网网址� and it remains moored on the Fraser River.
The ship has been used in film shoots over the years, including a 2018 episode of the X-Files.
Tapp complained to the coast guard about itB次元官网网址檚 inclusion on the list, insisting his ship is neither wrecked, abandoned, nor hazardous, but heB次元官网网址檚 been in a prolonged legal dispute,leaving the vesselB次元官网网址檚 future uncertain, he said in an interview.
When asked about the vesselB次元官网网址檚 current state and any future plans, Tapp, 86, said he was unsure as he prepares to deal with his legal issues.
B次元官网网址淭o be honest, I couldnB次元官网网址檛 tell you,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e got no idea. I might be dead before, so who knows?B次元官网网址�
A recently posted video online purportedly from the engine room of the Queen of Sidney shows the grimy and oily state of the vesselB次元官网网址檚 interior, and the Canadian Coast Guard said that it B次元官网网址渋s aware of the video on social media.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淲e are looking into this issue,B次元官网网址� Fisheries and Oceans Canada spokesman Craig Macartney said in an email. B次元官网网址淢embers of the public should never venture into or on a vessel of concern due to the many potential hazards these vessels can pose.B次元官网网址�
Macartney added that the Queen of Sidney was last assessed in 2018 and it was found B次元官网网址渋n poor condition, but was not a risk to pollute or a hazard.B次元官网网址�
It was added to the national inventory list nonetheless, but later removed after Tapp contacted the Coast Guard, and the agency took if off the list after concluding the vessel B次元官网网址渨as not a risk to pollute nor is it a hazard.B次元官网网址�
Other derelict vessels on the list havelanguished inB.C. waters for decades, such as the MV Spudnik, a U.S. Navy freighter removed from the Fraser River in 2020, and the cargo vessel Mini Fusion, a human smuggling ship formerly known as the MV Ocean Lady, which was removed from Desolation Sound in B.C. last year.
B次元官网网址淭hey were significant hazards,B次元官网网址� Brooks said, adding they cost B次元官网网址渕illions of dollars to address.B次元官网网址�
The Coast Guard also continues to deal with the Brigadier General M.G. Zalinski, a U.S. warship that sunk off the coast of Prince Rupert in 1946, whose hull is deteriorating and has been leaking heavy fuel oil periodically for years.
Brooks said the Coast Guard hopes to have the shipB次元官网网址檚 remaining oil removed by sometime next year.
B次元官网网址淐ertainly the Zalinski is a complex case,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚t certainly highlights the complexity when you think about the scale of the challenge of addressing wrecked, abandoned, and hazardous vessels across the country.B次元官网网址�
Howard Meakin, the owner of the McBarge, said he is still confident the vessel can have a long second life as a tourist attraction symbolizing VancouverB次元官网网址檚 journey from B次元官网网址渕ill town to metropolisB次元官网网址� once the right home is found.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 an iconic cultural attraction for B.C. and for Canada,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 definitely, you know, on my bucket list to get done.B次元官网网址�
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