Corrosion missed during inspections grounded P.E.I. ferry, documents show

TransportCanada Marine Safety and Security documents that CBCNews waitedmore than five years to receive, after filing a federal access to information request, say the corrosionthat led to the suspension of MV Holiday Island in 2016 should have been found earlier.

Repairs toextensive corrosion in the ballast tanks in 2016 meant the ship wasn't available until October of that season.

Instead, the Wood Islands, P.E.I., to Caribou, Nova Scotia, route was covered by one ferry, leading to a 15 per cent drop in traffic according to the ferry company, Northumberland Ferries.MV Confederation was making only six runs a day versus the company's usual nine when both ships were operational.

And on days when MV Confederation suffered mechanical issues that season, there was no ferry service at all.

The water in ballasttanks helps keep a vessel levelsomething that's particularly important when loading a passenger ferry, saidJohn Dalziel. The adjunct professor at Dalhousie Universityworked more than 50 years in the marine industry in ship construction and repair supervision, and as a safety inspector forTransportCanada Marine Safety and Security.

"You may have a big truck on one side and a motorcycle on the other, so it's going to lean over," he explained. "So you want to keep this under control."

MV Holiday Island has beenunder Transport Canada's delegated inspection program since 2007. The vessel is owned by the federal government, in the person of whoever holds thejob of transport minister. Northumberland Ferries is contracted to lease and operate the ship, andLloyd's Register iscontracted to doinspections on behalf of Transport Canada.

Corrosion of the ballast tanks was raised as a concern by Lloyd's Register inspectors in 2007 because the coating on the tanks was poorand these tanks are filled withsaltwater, which is corrosive. Transport Canada officials sayinspectors from Lloyd's, an engineering and technical services company based in the United Kingdom,saidthere would be annual inspections of the tanks to keep an eye on their condition.

'This was a very old ship'

Given the age of MV Holiday Island, Dalziel saidthis corrosion needed to betracked closely.

"That was a very old ship. Most ships last 30 years," saidDalziel.'It was 45 yearsway past its normal life. And so you should look at that very carefully."

The documents CBC News received througha federalaccess to Informationrequest point toaLloyd's inspection report from May 2015 that says all the tanks were inspected and their structural condition was good.

However, Transport Canada officials say,"it would appear reasonable to expect that some of the deficiencies noted where perforation and excessive corrosion is present and requires immediate repair ought to have been observable previous to May 2016 based on previous inspection."

Ultrasonic thickness measurements of the steel tanks revealed extensive corrosion during an inspection in Les Mchins, Quebecin June 2016. Officials said that kind ofmeasurement exercisewould have been warranted in 2012, but wasn't done.

Dalziel said excessive corrosion like that seen on MV Holiday Island in 2016 doesn't happen overnight.

"It's not like banging into something. That happened over a period of time. That was in very bad condition. It should never have been allowed to get into that condition."

CBC News askedtwo other Canadian marine experts to give their assessment of the documents and theyboth agreed something musthave beenmissed in earlier inspections for the corrosion to have progressed so far by 2016.

Vessel is 'safe and seaworthy'

CBC News asked Northumberland Ferries for an interview, but general manager and vice-presidentof operationsDonaldCormierwould agree to answerwritten questions only.

He said annual visual inspections, as required, were conducted by Lloyd's to ensure the vessel was safe to operate between 2007 and 2015.

At no time, before or after 2016, was the safety of the vessel or the watertight integrity of the hull at risk.- Donald Cormier, Northumberland Ferries

In regards to why thickness measurements were not taken in 2012, he said, "Northumberland Ferrieswould not challenge a surveyor's assessment unless we believed the condition of the ship was not safe." In this case, Cormier saidMV Holiday Island was "safe and seaworthy."

He added: "At no time, before or after 2016, was the safety of the vessel or the watertight integrity of the hull at risk.

"Maintenance of older vessels is an ongoing challenge and in this instance, the vessel owner plays a key role," said Cormier.

Third-party information cited

Transport Canada officials agree with the Northumberland Ferriesassessment, saying that from 2007 to 2015, MV Holiday Island passed its annual inspections and was issued all required certificates. Transport Canada officials also saidthey monitored Lloyd's inspection work on the ferry in 2014 and 2016.

Still, Transport Canada officials say in the June 2016 inspectiondocuments that Lloyd's Register should "provide an explanation of the apparent irregularity concerning the inspection"of the tanks.

CBC News asked Lloyd's for an explanation, but Nicola Good, head of brand and external relations for the Lloyd's marine and offshore business, wrote that no one is still working for Lloyd's who was involved with inspections of MV Holiday Island from 2007 to 2016.

Goodsaid answering questions from records would require third-party consents, which she said would would likely put constraints on what could be released.

Transport Canada officials said they are not able to share details of their discussions with Lloyd'sbecause it'sconsidered third-party information. They did say that after the 2016 suspension of MV Holiday Island, Lloyd's Register was audited and an action plan was developed to address the findings, anda follow-up was conducted by Transport Canada.

Again, Transport Canadaofficials said any details about the audit and action plan could not be shared with CBC News because they involve third parties.

CBC News reached out to Lloyd's Registeragainafter receiving this information about the audit and action plan. A spokesperson for the engineering and technical services companysaid it would consider providingcomments, but none had beenreceived several days later.

To this day, Lloyd's continues to inspect Northumberland Ferries ships on behalf of Transport Canada.

New ferry slated for 2027

CBC News asked Transport Canada for inspection documents that would outline the current condition of MV Holiday Island, in 2022,but officials said they did not have those documents.

Instead, CBC News was told to reach out to Northumberland Ferries.

Ferry officialsprovided CBC News a one-page summary from MV Holiday Island'sdrydocking in May 2021, including the results of more than 1,300 steel thickness measurements taken on the hull and ballast tanks. The documents show 97 per centof those measurements met acceptable standards, while the other three per cent of readings led to repairswithadditional steelwork.

Cormier said decisions and work made during the 2016 drydocking ensured the life of MV Holiday Island would be extended at least 10 years.

Although Cormier said additional steelwork is usually done every year, hewould not disclose how much that annual work is costing.

Federal Procurement and Public Services Canada officials have confirmed that design work is underway for a new Holiday Island II to serve on the P.E.I. to Nova Scotia route, but no start date for construction has been determined.

Procurement officials expect the new ferryto be delivered in 2027.