MAIL BO Cape Breton was past preservation Dear Editor: Jn response to the article on the front page of your Aug. 6, 2000 issue, I feel there are some points that require clarification about the HIiMCS Cape Breton. A number of groups seri- ously examined the saving of this ship for museum purpos- es. T was a part of one of them. The most serious bid was put torth by a group of five business people w ho wanted te preserve the ship for muse- um purposes. Plans were put into place to have the ship restored to an operating con- dition and to employ i standby disaster relief ship as a backup when not on display as a museum. The plan had gotten to, the point of a request for a grant being een made to The Hon. Sheila Copps for $18 million to accomplish this task. Alter careful consideration it appears that even this amount would have been insufficient to bring this ship to a point that it could be operated safely in a seagoing capacity. When this plan fell apart, the only realistic option was to have the ship turned over for artificial reef purposes. The simple economic real- ity is. that it would be too expensive to have the ship towed fo a country that would allow scrapping to be done or to scrap tt focally. Mr. Newby mentions sim- iiar sized ships that have become museum pieces in the United States. What most people fil te mention when making this comparison is that the U.S. ships were kept ina state of preservation. This is commonly reterred to as being Smothballed.” This process ensures that the hull does not corrode and the interior spaces are sealed and kept ata constant: rate of humidity. The Jeremiah O'Brien in San Francisco, which is com- monly used as a comparison to the Cape Breton, was built as a merchant ship, nota war- ship. In addition, it: spent over 25 years in a state of preservation before it, was “restored by volunteers.” None of this was ever done for Cape Breton, After being commissioned as HAS Flamborough = Hend in November of 1944 in North Vancouver, the ship sailed for the Far East for service with the British. This was one of a series of ships built in North Vancouver tor the reoccupa- tion of British Cotonies, which were then being occu- pied by the Japanese, Due to severe manpower shortages on British ships at the time, Britain attempted to get Canada to provide the crews. S.LAURSEN & SON draperies & blinds Itd. Servi “a the Lower Mainland for over 28 years wersstdrapesandblinds.com 4 Custom Rods, Upholstery & Bedspreads {risk about our Seniors Discount) For Free Estimate call 922-4975 or 987-2966 Drapery Labour $14.95 per panel lined. Low Low Paices REMOTE CONTROL CAR RACES Prizes for the winners FREE air fresheners, interior glass cleaners, tire cleaners, interior dash cleaners and emergency car keys Oil changes from $31.99. Not valid with other oil change af offers, Expiry: August 23, 2000. Prime Minister McKenzie King refused for potitical rea- sons related to British cote- tization not plav.og well in Quebee at the time. After a tew vears of service in the Far East, the ship was aid up with another North Vancouver-buift ship in Singapore, which had seen service with othe Royal Netherlands Navy. The two ships were sold to Canada in 1952 and became HMCS Cape Breton and HMCS Cape Seatt. Cape Breton was employed as an engineering school in Halifax from 1952 to 1957. At this time, it was decided to commission the ship for sea- going duties as an escort repair ship for the Pacific Fleet. This was completed by 1959 at which time the ce sailed for Esquimalt. Cape Breton served in this capacity until 1964 at which time it was laid up due fo insufficient Manpower. The ship spent the nest 30 years as a floating barracks barge, steel foundry and as a home for various workshops tor the maintenance of active warships. In the mid-1980s, it was determined that Cape Breton could not last much longer in this role duc to it’s deterio- rating condition, A new shore-based facility was built which became known as Fleet v; Maintenance Facility Cape Breton in honour of the ship of the same name. When this new building was completed, Cape Breton was towed across to the other side of Esquimalt harbour to sit and wait to see if any of the preservation plains would come to fruition. After four years, it was obvious thar nothing was coming of any preservation plans so the ship was turned over fr disposal. All during this period, the ship was left open te the ele- ments, Souvenir hunters went through the ship removing almost anything that could be carried up to and inchiding most of the brass portholes. Some vandalism had been done inside as well as nunter- ous seagulls had taken up res- idence inside the ship, as the holes where the portholes had been were open to the outside. About the only thing not stolen was a bilingual sign asking people not to. steal items trom the ship in case it was saved as a museum, The only item of value safely removed from the ship was the former mahogany chart table, which is now in use as a storage cabinet at the Naval Museum in Esquimale. With all due respect to Mr. Newby, the Cape Breton cannot be realistically com- pared to the SS Jeremiah O’Brien as they had com- pletely different lives. would have been nice to a our the shipbuilding efforts of North Vancouver during World War Tl, however the condition of Cape Breton is so bad that it would have been unrealistic. David J. Shirlaw North Vancouver Mary =e OW, Lube & Filter futly ay wwacranty 21 pt. Safety check. 15 rminutes - FAST! Iinctudes up to 5 Itres of 10w30 Quakerstate 1362 Marine Drive 980-9NS Mon-Sat 800arn-G00pm, Sun. 9:00am-5 00pm Expires Sept 6/2000 W/AVLORMOTIVESS, prifiza B.C.AA., ABA, LC.B.C. Approved SUMMER SPECIA ALL SERVICE BY GOVT. REGISTERED TECHNICIANS © north shore. READERS 1 999 fe Tune-Up - Govt licensed fa W CHOICE = HIGH TECH ; $ One of 80's 109 ArCare techanans will check Pressure lest rad OK water pump. noses, buts. dran & anew aratroese. 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