Powerful new vessel joins oil spill response fleet

 From Alyeska: 

Alyeska Pipeline President Tom Barrett christens the Yukon Responder with TAPS personnel. Photo courtesy of Alyeska.
Alyeska Pipeline President Tom Barrett christens the Yukon Responder with TAPS personnel.

The Yukon Responder is Alyeska’s newest oil spill response vessel and it is a beast with a 34-foot hull, 12-foot beam, twin Yamaha 250hp outboard motors, 300-gallon fuel tank, seating for 12, and a weight capacity of 7,000 lbs. This vessel is different from other TAPS response vessels in that it is a twin screw catamaran, specifically designed for river response but fully capable of operating in Prince William Sound.

“Yukon River is an iconic Alaska river, and it requires an icon response vessel,” said Earl Rose, Oil Spill Coordinator for Alyeska, during the christening ceremony on the Yukon River. Present for the christening was Tom Barrett, President of Alyeska, who lauded Alyeska’s Vessel Operating Committee (VOC) for successfully designing the Yukon Responder and integrating it with the TAPS response fleet.

The christening occurred during an exercise where operators completed 8 engine hours of hands-on training with the Yukon Responder, consisting of deep and shallow water maneuvers, anchoring, engine failure, refueling, towing, man overboard and rescue, operating with a loaded deck and beach landings.

“The advanced training is required of operators because it significantly increases safety and mitigates risk on the water,” Rose said. “Responders acquire a better understanding of river hydrology which helps with oil spill tactics and it reinforces and enhances field leadership.”

Yukon Responder has the capacity to carry the equivalent of a 2015 Yukon Denali SUV. But one of its most remarkable custom-built features is the capability to refuel other vessels. The 300-gallon fuel tank is not only used to power its 500hp propulsion but also to provide refueling of other vessels, which is unprecedented functionality for TAPS oil spill response.

Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) joined the christening and the exercise where the Yukon Responder successfully refueled a separate response vessel. ADEC’s Elizabeth Stergiou was impressed and said, “The Yukon Responder’s underway refueling system is incredible.” Stergiou rode along for the refueling and participated in the transfer. “The underway refueling on the water seemed much more stable than an on-shore refueling.”

The Responder is a 34-foot landing craft with seating for 12 and the ability to refuel other vessels. Photo courtesy of Alyeska.
The Responder is a 34-foot landing craft with seating for 12 and the ability to refuel other vessels. Photo courtesy of Alyeska.

Also present for the christening was Doyon Ltd. vice president of administration, Geri Simon. Doyon Ltd. is the Alaska Native regional corporation for Interior Alaska and a valued partner and stakeholder in TAPS. Right before Simon christened the vessel with a bottle of Martinelli’s sparkling cider, she expressed appreciation for the care and concern given to oil spill response. “Alyeska continues to demonstrate its commitment to the partnership with the village response teams in protecting the subsistence areas along the pipeline corridor,” Simon said.

Alyeska VOC co-chairs Earl Rose and Ben Pennington and committee members Milton Moses, Fred Bethune and Larry Nutter are hard at work on the Copper Responder, a twin-engine 36-foot airboat landing craft, that is set to arrive on scene spring 2015. In terms of power and versatility, Yukon Responder is the Incredible Hulk where the Copper Responder will be like Iron Man.

• Submitted by Alyeska Communications.

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