THUNDER BAY -- The former Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker Alexander Henry has begun her voyage back to the port where she was launched in 1959.
Charlie Brown, president of the Lakehead Transportation Museum Society, says the company hired to return her to Thunder Bay took the vessel under tow from a dock at Picton, Ontario on Monday.
She could be in Thunder Bay as early as June 27, which is months earlier than had been expected.
"We didn't expect it to actually move this quickly. We had to take this window of opportunity or we wouldn't have got it into Thunder Bay until early September and probably lost most of our year," Brown said.
Just last week, Thunder Bay city council approved up to $125,000 toward the towing costs. Other funding is coming from the City of Kingston and a private donor, and the volunteer group is working to raise additional money.
Brown said members of the group are excited but the fact the decommissioned icebreaker is being returned so fast has left them "scrambling to make things work."
City administration has recommended the ship be docked at the Kam River Heritage Park rather than at the society's preferred location at the former Pool Six property south of Prince Arthur's Landing.
Where the ship will be taken when she arrives next week is "a good question. I'm not exactly sure," Brown said.
He explained that the group has no lease arrangement yet for either location. "Council's approved the Kam River but we're still hoping we can get the Pool Six site."
Brown said the resolution of the issue rests with city council and the Thunder Bay Port Authority.
