Could a large tanker knock out Vancouver’s Second Narrows Bridge? That’s the concern of a group of engineers who say tankers serving Kinder Morgan’s Burnaby terminal could collide with the 47-year-old bridge.
The group, called Concerned Professional Engineers, says a 120,000-tonne Aframax oil tanker could strike the adjacent railway bridge and send its debris flying toward the Second Narrows Bridge, causing the collapse of both bridges.
They add that a risk assessment has not been done before the federal government approves Kinder Morgan’s expansion.
“There’s going to be quite a lot of pressure to get those ships through in a very limited amount of time,” said Brian Gunn, a member of the engineer group.
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The largest oil tankers that would use Burrard Inlet after the expansion would have a width of 45 metres. The channel is three times wider, at 120 metres.
But accidents have happened. In 1979, a ship called the Japan Erica knocked the rail bridge out of service for months after colliding with it during a heavy fog.
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Neither Kinder Morgan or the Port of Metro Vancouver would comment on the story, just sending statements to Global News stating there have been oil tankers in Burrard Inlet for 60 years without any oil spills.
Since the 1979 accident, there have been significant safety improvements for tankers travelling through the inlet. Each ship has two pilots on board with GPS navigational aides accurate to the centimetre, and there are three tug boats guiding every tanker.
But, is that enough? Some say no.
“Folks in the industry will always tell us things are safe right up until the moment where something they didn’t think of happens, and then of course we all are left wondering why we didn’t think of this to begin with,” said Ben West, an environmentalist.
The federal government is expected to make a decision on the expanded Kinder Morgan pipeline by mid-December.
–With files from Aaron McArthur
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