MP, MLA push for removal of sunken sailboat in St. John River

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A sunken ship in the St. John River has prompted two area politicians to call on federal authorities to have the vessel removed from the water “immediately.”

In a joint statement, John Williamson, Member of Parliament for New Brunswick Southwest, and Bill Oliver, Member of the Legislative Assembly for Kings Centre, called on both Transport Canada and the Canadian Coast Guard to immediately remove Not a Starship from the St. John River. The sailboat, which spent the winter frozen in the waters before sinking earlier this year, has now become a risk to other boaters, Williamson and Oliver state, and needs to be removed from the waterway.

The 43-foot sailboat sat in the water near Browns Flat for months with both Transport Canada and the Canadian Coast Guard commenting earlier in the year it posed no immediate threat in terms of pollution or hazards. The vessel is registered to Jordan Douglas Tatton, Transport Canada’s registry of vessels shows, who had been given an April 30 deadline to have the boat removed. With that deadline now gone and the vessel underwater, it falls on the government, Williamson said, to remove the boat.

“Ottawa must immediately remove the wrecked sailboat Not a Starship. Any further delays would demonstrate an unacceptable disregard for environmental protection and community safety along the St. John River. This is another example of bureaucratic and oversight failures that demands immediate corrective action by the Liberal government,” Williamson noted in the statement.

Speaking to Brunswick News, Williamson said he’s concerned if the boat is not removed from the water in a timely manner it will become a navigational threat to other boaters and those who use the river for recreational activities.

“It’s a potential and real threat to marine traffic navigation on the St. John River. It’s a potential environmental danger, as well, and my concern today is the federal government isn’t going to do anything about it except meet and consult. The deadline has passed and Bill and I want the government to act to remove this sailboat as quickly as possible and, by that, we mean immediately,” he said.

It's a potential and real threat to marine traffic navigation on the St. John River.

John Williamson

While Williamson and Oliver pointed to both the Canadian Coast Guard and Transport Canada in their statement, Megan Gallant, spokesperson for Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Canadian Coast Guard, told Brunswick News via email the Coast Guard is no longer involved in the matter.

Gallant noted the Coast Guard “had been monitoring the vessel since December after the initial report was received. Our assessment determined that there were minimal quantities of fuel on board at the time of sinking, meaning that in the event of a spill they would have evaporated from the surface within 48 hours. Once our assessment was completed and determined there was no pollution” the file was transferred to Transport Canada. 

Brunswick News requested comment from Transport Canada regarding the matter including the status of the vessel and any plans regarding its removal as well as any concerns over the environmental impact, as per Williamson and Oliver’s statement. Though Transport Canada did not provide any answers on those specific questions, spokesperson Katherine Proulx did state in an email, “Transport Canada sent an officer today, May 1, 2024, to assess the situation of the Not a Starship vessel.”  A request for information on that officer’s visit and any pending actions has been made and Brunswick News is waiting for a response.

“It’s time the federal government took responsibility for this matter. People are concerned for the safety of the environment and the safety of those who use the river system. We need to have the boat removed immediately before boating activities increase, we’ve waited long enough, the time to act is now,” Oliver stressed in the statement.

Williamson agreed and, in an interview, said he’s hoping any removal efforts will be made rapidly but he doesn’t “have a lot of confidence that will be the case. If we have to keep talking about it and raising it and pointing the finger at the Trudeau government until it’s removed that’s what we’ll do.”

Stewards of the waterways

Denise Miller, communications director for the Saint John Power Boat Club, first reached out to the Coast Guard regarding the sailboat in December. She said she was concerned the boat would become frozen in the river at the time and now, with the course of events, is concerned about other boat traffic on the river and the potential hazard Not a Starship’s masts could pose to other boaters.

“I just knew it wasn’t going to end well, I just didn’t think it would happen so quick,” she said. “As a boater, we take pride in our river system. We’re stewards of the waterways and we don’t want navigational hazards, we don’t want pollution.”

Miller, who has been an avid boater for more than two decades, said she was worried all winter a snowmobiler could collide with the vessel and with it now sitting on the river bed and its masts protruding from the water there’s real concerns about safety. She said it’s a “high traffic area” and “it’s not a good situation.”

“I’m hoping it gets removed,” she said. “I hope there are lessons learned because this could have been prevented. The warnings were put out early and it just got passed from department to department. It just never should have happened and I don’t know what the logic behind the whole thing was.”