Mighty Ships - MV AVATAQ - Arctic Sealift

the survival of thousands depends on this one working ship after delivered the cargo vessel avataq faces the most dangerous conditions in the world something Bad's happened you're here alone you were you pray you pray aloud permission to deliver desperately needed supplies to the near Arctic the margin of safety is very small avataq maintains a lifeline carrying life's necessities to the north this is my new card it's my first purchase of my life for a me and my children avataq is a tough hard-working vessel that delivers goods to Canada's near Arctic places that are unreachable for most of the year and every summer the pressure is on her to complete that mission 113 meters long avataq has two cargo holes in her hull one set on top of the other between the holes under deck she can carry up to 5,500 tons of cargo ranging from vehicles to containers to construction and mining equipment people in the far north depend on avataq and her crew to bring them all their supplies but you can only reach them during the short summer season so right now she is readying for her first voyage in 8 months in the port of Valleyfield Quebec near Montreal from Valleyfield she will journey 3,500 kilometers to a remote settlement south of Ungava Bay population 2,500 Kuja wok is the largest Inuit town in the region of Nunavut Quebec there are no roads connecting Kucha wack to the outside world and that's why I've attacks mission is so critical well the overt act carries on board heavy equipment machinery and oversize building materials that normally can't go by aircraft and we don't have rail here so it's a quite a link to the northern communities to get a good only in a short shipping season back south in Valleyfield avataq is gearing up after a winter of inactivity loading a broad range of goods her remote customers are waiting for long geez isn't is the ship's captain this is his first voyage as the mission commander yeah I'm looking forward to this there's a strong ship for they all and all that stuff it's made very strong I'm very curious about what this season have for us all the small surprise 4,200 tons of various sized cargo is sitting on the pier the keys is to save space all the time all the time it saves space [Music] that's your boy Jonathan SJ is avataq slowed master his job is to maximize the ship's 12,000 cubic metre hold he's got to find a way to fit all this cargo into the ship like the propane and acid and extinguisher get some fuel and a lot of it is dangerous stuff this is a dangerous good - oh this is jet fuel it's hard to believe this will all find its way into one compact cargo ship sit on you oh so silly corner he works with dark supervisor and exalted more set to get the cargo aboard because we try to top everything vertically to save some space and horizontally as well and that's how that's what we do we try to maximize the being of the ship no computer program can do what Jonathan and Alex do filling of attacks holes keeping them balanced and safe he's an art and they have just five days to do it some things are on paper some are in my head and then I sleep and I think about all of that then I'm like okay when done rescue we go on a little more to support loading the ship correctly can be a matter of life or death an imbalance load could lead to a quick capsizing in icy waters far from rescue the chances of survival would be slim Jonathan keeps a close watch so far the load is going exactly as he envisioned guys are working get two teams of two cranes are running it's very very good for us I'm very happy for that it's going very fast but then very fast runs to a dead stop it's a leak some oil even a small oil leak is a big problem for avataq screw who are about to be all alone in the far north mechanical failure is not an option we have will get some divers here if you wanna go see what's going on they're gonna have a do a dive team is called in to investigate yes it's a Kirby bargain superlight 17 this one video camera light communications with Josh Bazar is the diver safety valve so there's stuff we sell five six months pots that we we work this is a setback avataq schedule cannot afford she can only reach her remote northern destination in the short summer window and has three runs scheduled each takes three weeks to complete if she's late on this one it's a domino effect for the rest of the season but rookie captain Lee's aunt is relieved the leak was discovered before the voyage started it is better for the kind of stuff to happen at the dock then somewhere in the north so we'll get all that fixed and all ready for the season three years ago avataq suffered engine failure in the remote Hudson Strait her crew survived on minimal supplies waiting for rescue but it took three months to bring her home this time the crew isn't taking any chances Jenny Lee Raymond is avataq chief mate yeah it's very hard it's something Bad's happened you're here alone you were you pray while Josh seeks to find the source of the problem the load Ian has to stop a shifting Hulk could kill him but the waiting around his load master Jonathan on edge this ship we noted in five days usually but now we lose a day so it's not good you know yes I'm concerned because you know those communities they need their stuff need to go you know everyone hopes the oil leak problem is small ajosh wanna show a captain because if it's big thousands of people in the remote Canadian North will not get the shipments they so desperately need the crew of avataq is under pressure to load their cargo 2,500 people are waiting for vital supplies 3,500 kilometers away in the far north but right now loading is stopped dead an oil leak has the crew worried that avataq will not be leaving her home port near Montreal anytime soon igor kondratyuk is the chief engineer yesterday that guys they notice a little droplets of oil in the water we need to determine where leak coming from how severe that is Igor hopes the problem is a simple fix worst case if it's a if it's an internal seal in a shaft then we're talking about right up avataq would need to be taken out of the water for servicing permission would be over and thousands in the north would not get the supplies they've waited for all winter all the load was expected to take five days and they've already lost one after two hours of searching the dive team thinks they have found the source of the lead ditchy you've located your leak there if you want to come out look it's AB attacks variable pitch propeller the blades angle or pitch can be controlled from the bridge to increase and reduce thrust high pressure hydraulic oil controls the pitch the steel washers which surround the stainless steel bolts on the propeller hub are corroded Auriga Row is in charge of the repair Oh still with stainless steel as a chemical reaction which deteriorates the steel washers so it's leaving a bit of a gap and that's where I'm where the oil seems to be seeping up the team decides not to replace the washers but to remove them all together they're more trouble than they are worth library thanks Loretta Sarah to the presidency dive video Dorcas captain Lee's suit gets word from have attacks owners even with diver Josh Bazar at work it's okay for the crew to start loading again for Josh it's slow grueling work anything that could be simple gets lots more complicated once you're in or to remind yourself that you got water current and got only two ends with the leak being fixed at the loading underway again the captain is happy he's eager to get to see well in fact yes I would be really happy one will depart from here when everything will be safe we'll just go and to be honest are you like when the ship is going at sea we are quiet we are on the way navigation officer Christian Siriano make sure everything goes in according to load master Jonathan essays careful plan a big movement after you keep your hand on and on keep it safe dynamite for mining operations prefabricated houses snowmobiles ATVs pickup trucks the differing sizes and shapes of everything make loading avataq a unique challenge dangerous cargo such as dynamite get special treatment so when the dangerous cargo comes onboard I think note of it here then I think know the exact position these rough notes must translate to a perfect weight balance once the ship is alone in the north there's no margin for error by morning the propeller problem is fixed but avataq is now two days behind schedule it's all done have attacks good to go and the load Ian continues we just want to make sure that everything we will go and that wind deck because after we told the hatch it's when you start putting the containers it's too late you know so we want to make sure that everything is in good order Jonathan still working out the perfect distribution that only he can see in his mind because the plane always changing one of the most cumbersome objects heading for Kuja wok is that twelve and a half ton rock drill Phil is in two separate parts the top and the actual drill remove everything in there in the right position as close to the wall as possible the drill goes in exactly according to Jonathan's master plan the cargo hold is fully loaded around it the main hatches are closed but they're still not done now the top outside deck is stacked with containers on top of the containers they put cars fuel tanks fishing boats large objects that don't fit inside the holds blast aboard are the ship's own tractor forklifts barges and even small tugboats avataq does not just bring the cargo she brings all the equipment needed to unload it she transports her own port facilities because kujou AK has nothing but an empty beach without even a single dock as the last tugboat is locked into place avataq is finally ready to go she is already two days behind schedule and now reports of the busiest iceberg season in five years point to dangers and delays ahead the cargo vessel avataq is now ready to make her way on a 3500 kilometer lifeline mission to the near Arctic town of kujou Act Quebec but first avataq has to turn 180 degrees in a strong current with engines that haven't been run in eight months and she has a brand new captain your zeal isn't in command her attack is a 25 year old ship and even the local pilots know she has her own particular quirks the in attack is a special ship with little wind she just strafe for a bit so we have to be very careful and go slow otherwise he'd be in trouble she has no boat roster and she break to the left very difficult yeah we're all ready to start my own engine [Music] engines that haven't been run all winter roared to life the local pilots guide her out of the channel at 11 p.m. avataq finally leaves port so enough she's now swung around and heads east her week-long voyage finally underway after days of delay captain Lee's DUT is happy to finally be on the move quite a team quite happy to leave the dock to be honest it's always loading the ship years but it feels always a little bit crazy things happening cargo change all the time we run fast for the departure something happened delay will be more quiet at sea midship they crawl up river through a series of locks the st. Lawrence Seaway this links the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean there's a final stop for cargo at contra curve Quebec more explosives so we're gonna take one container at a time and inspect them outside everywhere with fire truck near that container and we'll be standing by with the fire hose clanking sounds from the container set load master Jonathan ashay on edge the container is lifted but it's off balance and there's enough TNT aboard to blow avataq to smithereens hey creepy evil evil was not balanced and it was be in the middle of two more two containers so we had some difficulties to to align the the pins basket for a space locked onto the pins the container is secure avataq passes by Quebec City the last major port you'll see on her voyage if she runs into trouble in the ice the Coast Guard icebreakers based here are her only hope of returning safely to port even on patrol they could be almost a week away from rescuing the ship on the bridge captain Lee's aunt is already on the lookout for growlers small icebergs that look like Whitecaps but can tear into a ship's hull small and dangerous piece of ice cannot really be picked up by the radar so it's basically in perfect weather with no obstacles in sight it's hard to imagine what the ice-choked dangerous seas ahead have in store on deck 19 year old cadet Sebastien Boucher checks the ballast tanks that keep the ship level we need to check all the ballast tank everyday because it's important for the officer of stair to the stability of the ship he checks water levels in the tanks with a tape measure to make sure they aren't losing any balance to leaks 12 meter 57 centimeter of water Sebastian is looking forward to his first chance at the ship's home tonight I'm gonna do some wheel and and that's gonna be my first time I'm very excited I'm not nervous at all because the crew is very is very cool I'm excited because that's more part of my future job two days out and life settles into a routine on the ship's Stern chief engineer igor Kondratiev stays in shape with a makeshift gym they do a few wraps for a tenner then drop the weight off and do a few more there are spool shops where'd your workout my walk dog is in there Angelo what's to be done in it this for sure we'll see now Sebastian gets his chance at the helm unbeknownst to him he's also about to be initiated go to zero six five zero six five you look at your what you were asking so I meant to do it so how much rather you giving in right now doing something yes whether what Sebastian appears not to know how to control the ship navigation officer Christian Santa note is trying to keep a straight face the ship is actually on autopilot wheelman mark vishal wants to see how long it takes sebastian to figure it out christian yes changing wheels ma'am okay ho 69 o 69 for ho 65 65 yes after more than ten minutes of confusion sebastian finally figures it out when mark took the wheel and i realized that it was an automatic pilot oh yeah yeah I'm okay with that I found this I found this funny and I'm I play I'm playing the game yes I'm Makenna then that's a I need to pass this those days it's all laughs now but come tomorrow the fun is over as avataq hits the icy open seas the cargo-ship avataq is on route to deliver 4200 tons of goods to the near Arctic it's the second day of a 3500 kilometer trip she's expected to dock in the northern Canadian port of Pooja wok in five days she leaves the st. Lawrence River and now enters the Labrador sea this part of the voyage is the most dangerous summer is iceberg season and reports of more icebergs than usual put her crew on high alert they don't get far before facing dangerous growlers small icebergs made of old especially hard ice on the surface growlers look like Whitecaps but below water level any one of them can weigh up to a hundred tons and can tear through the ship's hull chief maid Jenny Lee limo is in command on the bridge you are very tricky because we don't see them in the in the radar and they are their size and they are old I so this is art like a rock so they can be very very problematic the first trip end of June the beginning of July is very the worst because all the pieces is leaving the are chickens going down more south so the other time of the year is the worst avataq is not an icebreaker her halt cannot cut through ice nor withstand a direct hit from an iceberg and this whole ship is not the easiest to maneuver avataq is only a single variable pitch propeller to change speed and a rudder to change course so we have to go very slow approach carefully four days of treacherous sailing pass as they work their way through the Labrador sea after more than 2,500 kilometres of cautious navigation they are now in Ungava Bay and the ice becomes an even bigger threat navigation officer Bruno San Pierre has control on the bridge when the first full sized iceberg appears Solana captain the last corner of a shoe company has very little our food should in some tender as burnished conductors on a wishlist war is one big-ass burger just on the port side on my route in 12 marks journalist Berg Nani c4c are already milled jonesburg an Avenger captain Logies lizard is relieved that there are far fewer icebergs than reported let's say that I am very happy that the ice condition is not as the child said and for one time at least it's much better but the threat of growlers is still out there you can expect many growers a little bit everywhere when there is a big piece you can be sure they're small one around the wind picks up and the growlers are lost among the Whitecaps avataq travels only eleven kilometers in four and a half hours today alone the ship schedule is set back 10 hours it's a tuna steak and there's gonna be a passed-out Rezo sausage in the galley chef Mike Dechaine is no stranger to risk this is for tomorrow by the debuff he left a criminal life back in Montreal for the legal thrills of the northern seas that was in Montreal smuggling and dealing and with hanging with bad people and stuff like that and when I got that done but I changed my hat wanna taste my friend to interpret things I got a girlfriend now and it's kind of hard but you know everyone work will get it work and I think I'd do my job pretty well another day passes it's on the bridge captain Lee's on strategy is to find ice thin enough for his ship to cut through at what this instead he finds growlers hard as rock all eyes we have to be very careful with that with occasionally some area of worse condition so well doesn't sound very good we will see how bad it is and after that we might call for the assistance of another of an icebreaker the next morning speed is reduced to just 2 knots or 4 km/h they could walk faster the way or Giamatti on to get a ship the course sooner passivity see simply they take detective radar make a signal prefer the old amage gonna be the only way ahead is to find the weakest ice you just put the bow against the ice slowly and then give a little bit of the engine to go forward and the ice will clear out slowly and you just go through we can touch the ice as long as we do it slowly these on decides to go for it without any icebreaker to help them but it's going to be a slow trek through the ice and he'll have to stay on the bridge every minute okay Dale or Victor together a vacuum user since this yet to a modest ow occasional messy conditions go from bad to worse as fog sets in around two knots I try to keep to not tree nuts maximum the ete estimated time of a roll we change that probably not then time but probably close to that another slow treacherous night of zigging and zagging and they are now two days behind schedule finally they get through the ice and reached the mouth of the zoic river midship and there they face another major challenge to beat the tide and get avataq upriver to offload her cargo after almost thirty five hundred kilometers the cargo ship avataq is one day out from her destination the village of Kujo AK the people there have waited eight months all winter for desperately needed supplies to get their avataq has to navigate up a narrow rocky river socket levantus captain lodges lizard is feeling the pressure on his first mission in command the entrance and the transit into the Utrecht River it's a tricky spot it's a real challenge you know for everyone that has to go there at low tide the river is a rocky nightmare that's a challenge for the ship challenge for Vitaly operator also after that it's the margin of safety is very small Kujo arc is 48 kilometers upriver the water level here rises and lowers as much as 10 meters with the massive tide entering the river must be timed perfectly the bridge is cleared of non-essential crew so the captain can focus like this those one sank winds are blowing at 22 knots 41 km/h pushing avataq from side to side captain Lee's aunt has two choices enter the river or lose another day waiting for the next high tide but once he starts there's no turning back Lizotte cannot simply steer straight into the channel the strong current and high winds would carry avataq off course pushing her towards shallow water and shore markers on land indicate the center of the river these thoughts strategy is to steer avataq on a series of extreme headings that will work with the wind and the current to keep her on course social boycott ohnaka pase de niro as a father granted and it is anger ball okay Cespedes you don't tell my people to please post we miss a point optometrist go who say they feel a bit helmsman marked by Zhang must respond immediately to keep the ship in the middle of the narrow River I got this pleasedon't keeps a close eye on the channel markers keeping his ship online Marco okay massive attack risk is a linguist warning he moves her in the wind and current and expertly keeps avataq in the center of the channel I dolls right except outside notice I got the trackball that's the at the website on our mind after two hours the captain gets his big ship safely up the river he orders the anchor dropped in triumph [Music] they stopped 17 kilometers from town the only place they can safely anchor at low tide now the monumental task of offloading the ships 4,200 tons of cargo begins building over here on the barge the first barge of cargo the village has no actual port facilities so the first cargo offloaded is the material it takes to build a temporary one two times two 40-ton barges and three forklift dozers along with three containers that will be the shore office the tug takes the barges and trailers to the beach as they set up the shore station it's time to start lifting the cargo off the ship this is the day loadmaster Johnathan ashay has awaited for two weeks to be very careful to cranes work in tandem loading up the barges once the barges are at capacity they're towed by tugs 17 kilometers upriver each mode takes an hour and a half to reach the town and they can only go when the tide is high could you work is very tough on the Turk boys the tug operators work 18 hours a day resting only during the six hours when the tide is lowest they tried to sleep there six hours and that's it they they get back to work could you work is the test for the crew and for the tote get a lot of cargo each round trip leaving avataq offloading on shore and returning to the ship takes a grueling five and a half hours as the cargo arrives the local residents are summoned to pick up their goods your signature there Thank You cadet Sebastien Boucher gets his first chance at the tugs helm I'm excited about it because it's a very particle or a way to unload today it's a little bit raining there's a little bit of wind but it's it's still safe uh yeah we don't have the choice it's the job as the delivery unfolds Johnathan watches his crew carefully and with pride can assure you that average person are not able to do it without stress you know it's those guys are very good very proud proud of them on one type ATM do lozad navigates the treacherous river which at high tide is 11 meters deep at low tide barely a meter in spots suddenly Etienne gets strange readings the engines main batteries are draining back 8 volt I used to if he loses power both the tug and barge his bullying will be swept downriver by the five not current he's lucky the tug makes it to shore but it dies on the beach and can't be restarted so the tag is dead we don't know what is the problem you try to fix it but there's no solution are you gonna keep trying to fix it before the tide and get out from here the crew needs to act quickly they have less than an hour to ride the tide back to the ship they improvise and use their massive forklift loader to pick the tug out of the water and load it onto a barge they tie it down and haul it back to the ship for repair Jonathan asked cope with this unprecedented setback he's got only one tug working the way em we're gonna resolve the problem and start back tomorrow still have a little bit anxious but after delay upon delay avataq now faces yet another obstacle having to offload her critical cargo at half the planned speed on a treacherous river with just one working tug a tug from the cargo ship avataq has broken down on its first day at work in the remote settlement could you AK near the Arctic Circle that means avataq is at half her working capacity offloading cargo overnight the crew scrambles to fix the tug the problem is with the alternator fortunately avataq carries spare parts for just about any emergency chief engineer igor kondratyev and his team raised to replace the alternator overnight and by the morning tide the tug is ready to return to work it's over now so to barge again now the cargo comes off avataq quickly and efficiently and it's up to the locals to come and collect the goods they've waited for for so long yeah Robin for co-director Georgia yes your containers on the beach Robin DuPont Owens kujou acts most popular restaurant there are not really season one we will treat everyone I have up the menu is very very good that people will appreciate very very much - bye poutine incredible people like it so much everything isn't the gravy Robins been waiting for his shipment since winter korjev Enderman leaved the poetry like a public who's and put more shire there come on they advocate a to have you everything is fine nothing broken nice try machine everything's good I'm very happy very very happy road builder Luke Cormier gets his much-needed heavy equipment and his dynamite a drill and dynamite get three container of denim I see if you get though I know what should we get nothing here you got no Road you have nothing every piece of cargo that avataq delivers helps keep this remote community vital and functioning but some items also bring pure joy this is my new car it's my first SUV of it's my first purchase of my life for me and my children and I'm very proud of it living in Arctic it's very not easy to get vehicles and he has to arrive in the summertime and we're very fortunate to have this SUV and I've been waiting for it since February avatar is very important because it's the only way for us to have shipping from the south to be shipped to Nunavut [Music] despite delays and constant challenges captain logis Lizotte can finally say that his first mission on avataq has been accomplished well yes I'm sure that the opponent coachwork they are very happy that their stuff is coming in it takes a full week to unload all of the supplies for Kuja wok furloughed master Jonathan Ashe a it's a job well done yeah I was done in for cooking whackers we're doing the last barge right now I'm sure everyone is quite happy that it is finished here it was a challenge to the couch work holding here and I'm very proud of this crew avataq will return to her home court in two weeks and make two more runs north before the long winter sets in she'll continue her critical role supporting one of the most remote places in the world a top ship on a top mission alone in ICC's [Music] [Music]

Channel: NEAS Group

Views: 245,188

Keywords: mighty, ships, arctic, sealift, mv, avataq, discovery, channel, neas, nanuk, high, haulers, hauler, sea, lift, desgagnés, desgagnes, desgagne, desgagné

Id: tK31Wt7Yvw8

Length: 46min 2sec (2762 seconds)

Published: Fri Jan 10 2020