Yellowknife (Jan 12/07) - Yellowknifers owe Richard Lafferty a debt of gratitude.

For 40 of the last 43 years, Lafferty has supervised the construction of the Mackenzie River ice crossing at Fort Providence that keeps us connected with outside world.

Richard Lafferty has overseen construction of the Mackenzie River ice crossing at Fort Providence for 40 years. - Christine Grimard/NNSL photo

Now, after 43 years with the NWT Department of Transportation, he's retiring.

"There are so few people out there with so much knowledge," said Bob Kelly, manager of public affairs and communication for the Department of Transportation.

"He's been a great mentor for someone starting in the department - he's seen it all."

Lafferty began working on the ice road in 1963 as an equipment operator. "Back then, the weather was colder, -40C, -50C was nothing in those days. As soon as the river would freeze over, we would start out on foot,"Lafferty said.

Lafferty and his crew would smooth out a surface with shovels and pick-axes. When the ice got thicker, they would deploy a 1952 army Jeep with a homemade V-plow over the ice.

Nowadays, workers use a giant ice auger to drill a hole into the ice. Then they use a pump to spray 3,000 gallons a minute of river water onto the ice with a 500 horsepower Detroit engine.

Spraying the ice increases its thickness, allowing it to support heavy traffic.

Lafferty said that when he lived by the crossing back in the '60s, maybe three or four trucks a week would pass by. Now, the mines alone attract 30 to 40 trucks a day.

The Mackenzie River ice crossing at Fort Providence is open to light traffic up to 5,000 kilograms. With the warm weather this year, the ferry is still open for heavier traffic.