SOUTH BAYMOUTH—The Owen Sound Transportation Company (OSTC) cancelled the Chi-Cheemaun’s first trip of Tuesday, June 6, but the ferry was back in action for the second trip of the day.
“An electrical storm took out our shore power on Monday night, and when that happens, a tiebreaker in the engine room pops open,” Susan Schrempf, OSTC president and CEO, told The Expositor. “If the shore power does not come back on (it depends on how responsive Hydro One is, and the cause of the power outage) we disconnect from shore power, close the tiebreaker, and go on the ship’s generators.”
“If shore power is restored,” she continued, “we close the tiebreaker and go back to normal for the remainder of the night.”
This time, when the tiebreaker opened, it opened with such force that it jammed and could not be closed, Ms. Schrempf added. “We suspect it was a power surge when the power went out.”
The open tiebreaker prevented the vessel from being able to feed any power (shore- or ship-generated) through the ship. “We had to remove the tiebreaker, get it out of the jammed position and then put it back in place, and then test it to make sure it was not damaged and worked properly under operating conditions,” Ms. Schrempf said.
The work was finished and the sea trial occurred at about 11 am on Tuesday, June 6 and the ferry went back into service with the 1:30 pm departure from Tobermory.
