After 10 months, NTCL barge adrift in Arctic Ocean returns to Canada
Barge had been drifting for 10 months as far as Siberian coast
A Canadian barge that was lost in the Beaufort Sea and drifted all the way to Russia returned home this morning after almost ten months at sea.
The barge, owned by the Northern Transportation Company Ltd., was towed into Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories, according to a source that's been working closely with the rescue.
The 40-metre barge, named NTAL 12, was en route to Tuktoyaktuk on October 20 when it was caught in an unexpected storm.
The barge broke away from its towboat and had been adrift ever since. NTCL found the barge off the Siberian coast on July 20.
The company hoped to return the ship to safe harbour a week after its rescue, but the trip was delayed because it encountered ice along the Alaskan coast.
The barge's journey all the way from the Canadian Beaufort Sea to the Russian Siberian coast sparked concerns that circumpolar nations were unprepared to deal with disasters in the Arctic Ocean, as the region welcomes more shipping traffic and interest from oil companies that want to drill.
The barge had approximately 3,500 litres of diesel fuel on board