- IMO
- 8301876
Compliance
Safety Record
- FIRESeriousJan 2, 2010CABOT STRAIT, NL
On 02 January 2010, the ro-pax vessel "CARIBOU" with 122 POB reported a small fire in a freezer compartment in Cabot Strait, Newfoundland. Fire was quickly extinguished.
- PERSON SERIOUSLY INJURED OR KILLED - In contact with any part of the ship or its contentsSeriousMar 19, 2009MARINE ATLANTIC TERMINALS, NORTH SYDNEY, NS, NOVA SCOTIA (NS)
On 19 March 2009, the M/V "CARIBOU", while at the Marine Atlantic Terminal, reported that a contractor working on board the vessel fell while insulating the #1 main engine exhaust. Minor injuries to lower back and arms reported.
- FIRESeriousNov 14, 2007CABOT STRAIT, NL
On 14 November 2007, an electric was fire discovered in a truck on the vehicle deck. The fire was extinguished with extinguisher by the deck watchmen. No damage to vessel or truck.
- FIRESeriousMar 4, 200414 NM NNE OF NORTH SYDNEY, NOVA SCOTIA
On the morning of 04 March 2004, the ro-ro passenger ferry Caribou departed Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador, on a regularly scheduled six-hour crossing to North Sydney, Nova Scotia. At about 1620, approximately 14 nautical miles from the North Sydney terminal, a series of furnace explosions occurred in the starboard auxiliary boiler. The resulting fires were quickly extinguished and the Caribou completed its voyage. One of two officers who suffered burns was airlifted to Halifax, Nova Scotia, for special medical treatment.
- EXPLOSIONModerateMay 4, 2002CABOT STRAIT
Enroute a crankcase explosion occured in #2 main engine. No injury nor pollution. #2 engine was taken off line and vessel operated using other 3 engines.
- TOTAL FAILURE OF ANY MACHINERY OR TECHNICAL SYSTEMMinorFeb 24, 20018 NM SSW OF PORT-AUX-BASQUES, NEWFOUNDLAND
The "M/V CARIBOU" experienced problems with the #4 steering unit. Vessel switched over to the #3 steering unit and continued on with the voyage.
- STRIKING - Allision with a fixed object (striking - includes berthed/docked vessels)SeriousAug 30, 2000MARINE ATLANTIC WHARF - NORTH SYDNEY, N.S., NOVA SCOTIA (NS)
Marine Atlantic reports M/V CARIBOU lost power while docking and made contact with a dolphin at 3.5 knots. Subsequent inspections by diver and TCMS showed no structural damage.
- EXPLOSIONModerateAug 14, 2000SYDNEY, NOVA SCOTIA, NOVA SCOTIA (NS)
Vessel sustained crankcase explosion on main engine #4 while entering harbour. No 4 engine shut down and vessel proceeded to dock without further incident.
Recorded marine occurrences naming this vessel.
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About This Vessel
MV Caribou was a Marine Atlantic passenger/vehicle ferry which operated between the islands of Newfoundland and Cape Breton in eastern Canada. Caribou was named in memory of her predecessor the SS Caribou which was sunk off Port aux Basques by a German U-boat on October 14, 1942 with the loss of 137 passengers and crew. Entering service in 1986, she was built by Versatile Davie in Lauzon, Quebec, and is specifically designed to traverse the 178 km (96 nmi) route across the Cabot Strait between North Sydney, Nova Scotia and Channel-Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador. A roll-on, roll-off design with a bow visor, Caribou had 2 vehicle decks and 5 decks above, the main passenger deck being Deck 5. She measured 179 metres in overall length and 25 metres in breadth, weighing 27,212 tons. Her capacity included 1,200 passengers and 370 automobiles or 77 tractor trailers. She had up to 106 crewmembers. Caribou's design had been commissioned by CN Marine in the early 1980s and was the culmination of years of research into effective icebreaking ship designs. The resulting hull design which Caribou and Joseph and Clara Smallwood were built to is called "Gulfspan", named in part after the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The "Gulfspan" hull is unique among Canadian icebreakers in that the ship slices through sea ice, rather than using its weight to ride up onto and crush the ice underneath.
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