Home page

Text size

E-mail this page

The Merv Hardie ferry, seen here crossing the Mackenzie River near Fort Providence in December 2008, was pulled out of the water early Wednesday morning after the river froze. Service could resume as early as tonight. - NNSL file photo

SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The last time ferry service was disrupted in November, motorists lined up at the pumps and the city ran out of gas.

Ben Walker, general manager of the Yellowknife Direct Co-op, doesn't think that will happen this year. The Co-op ordered five extra tankers of fuel in mid-October, and the trucks are now safely parked on the Yellowknife side of the river - just in case.

"Last year, when it got into that length of time - we've never seen that before in the fall," said Ben Walker, general manager at the Yellowknife Co-Op grocery store and gas bar, speaking of last November when the Merv Hardie was sidelined for nine days due to low water levels on the Mackenzie River.

"So when it went, we said, 'It's another year before the bridge opens so this year we'll be safer than sorry when it comes to gas.' "

Jamie Pye, manager at Gastown, said the store brought in a fresh shipment of gas only a few days ago.

"Right now we're fine for fuel," said Pye.

The ferry was pulled out of the water early Wednesday morning after the river froze overnight, which is a typical occurrence this time of year. The Department of Transportation is now awaiting solid ice so work crews operating a backhoe can cut a channel to allow ferry service to resume.

The Merv Hardie could be back in the water as early as tonight, said Earl Blacklock, a spokesperson for the Department of Transportation.

Historically, the ferry services the crossing from May through January. An ice road crossing is used during winter months once the ice is thick enough to safely support vehicle traffic. Yellowknife's road link to the south is usually shut down for a short while during the fall during freeze-up, and then for a longer period in the spring during breakup.

Yellowknife's two Extra Foods stores are making alternate shipping arrangements to keep their shelves stocked during the ferry shutdown.

"We are working hard to ensure that all our customers in Yellowknife are able to find the products that they need regardless of weather conditions," stated Craig Ware, the Western Canada director of corporate affairs for Loblaws, which owns Extra Foods.

"We are air freighting in product, which will not have any impact on prices in the stores."

In the spring, groceries are ferried over the river by helicopter, said Walker, but the Co-op can't do that this time of year because air temperatures are too cold so grocers are left with the more expensive option of chartering planes from Hay River.

Flying loads in from the south costs an additional $20,000 for the equivalent of one truck load, Walker told Yellowknifer.

"(The additional cost) comes off our bottom line and our members don't get that back at the end of the year," said Walker.

"But they're not worried about that - the Department of Transportation isn't worried about these things."

Walker questions whether the Department of Transportation does enough to ensure ferry disruptions are as short as possible.

"I've gone through a number of years where they've been able to cut a hole through, get it open and we've never missed a day," he said.

"Last year, they started talking about weeks and days and things like that (to resume ferry service). I'd never heard that before ... I guess that's to make us appreciate the bridge when it comes."

We welcome your opinions. Click here to e-mail a letter to the editor.