Peel River ferry back ‘within a day’ once water level recedes

The NWT government says as soon as water levels drop sufficiently on the Peel River, the MV Abraham Francis ferry near Fort McPherson can be operational again with less than a day’s work.

Water levels are steadily receding, though they had not reached the point at which the ferry could reopen as of Wednesday afternoon.

The ferry hasn’t operated since July 3 over high water levels on the Peel River following heavy rainfall. The closure was complicated when the ferry became dislodged from its cable on July 5, travelling up to six kilometres downstream of its own accord – by GNWT estimates – before being retrieved.

Allan Hamilton, the NWT Department of Infrastructure’s acting regional superintendent for the Beaufort Delta, told Cabin Radio the ship was undamaged during its excursion and remaining work is straightforward once water levels drop.

During the wait, Hamilton said, workers have brought heavy equipment to the site and stockpiled gravel ready to rapidly reshape washed-away landing areas when the water recedes.

“We’re just waiting for the situation to change,” he said on Wednesday afternoon.

“The good thing is that up to yesterday both landings were submerged and today the water is now slightly below, so we can see the top of the landings. That’s a good sign.”

Once workers can get started, they need to reinstall the cable on which the ferry runs then complete work on the landings.

“We anticipate within a day we will have that full operation. We’ll put it back in service, we’ll do our test run, and we should be back ready to receive passengers,” Hamilton said.

The problem for the many travellers waiting on either side of the river on the Dempster Highway – and businesses in the Beaufort Delta awaiting supplies and tourists – is how long the water will take to subside.

“We are hoping that in a few days we will be able to at least reinstall the cable,” Hamilton said on Wednesday.

After rainfall of up to 75 mm over a few days in its catchment basin, the Peel River’s water level hit a peak on July 5.

Anna Coles, a GNWT senior hydrologist, said levels “are coming down slightly slower than the rate at which they rose, but they’re definitely showing a pretty consistent drop.”

Coles described the Peel as “quite a responsive river,” meaning its levels can spike in the immediate aftermath of heavy rain in its basin.

There is no significant rain in the forecast for the area, she added.

Hamilton said the GNWT apologized for the inconvenience caused and thanked businesses and residents who had made travellers comfortable in the interim.

Tourists and businesses have described ruined trips and lengthy waits on the Dempster Highway, the only route from Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk to southern Canada.

“Our top priority is always safety, and that’s the main reason why we have not pushed to go back to put the ferry in before that time,” said Hamilton.

“Once the situation subsides and we assess the situation that everything is safe, right away we are ready, equipped, and we will start the operation of getting the ferry back in full operation.

“We are hoping that everything will just fall a bit more rapidly, just for us to start that whole exercise.”