Grounded Arctic tanker tries to lighten load

An attemptbegan Monday in the Northwest Passage to re-float a fuel tanker that has been stuck in a sandbar for nearly two weeks.

The merchant vessel Nanny ran aground Sept. 1 in Simpson Strait, about 50 kilometres southwest of Gjoa Haven, Nunavut.

Owned by Woodward's Oil Ltd. of Newfoundland and Labrador, the tanker was carrying 9.5 million litres of diesel that was supposed to be shipped to Nunavut's remote communities.

The double-hulled tanker was not damaged when it ran aground, and no diesel has leaked from it to date, said the Canadian Coast Guard, which has been monitoring the tanker.

A second Woodward's fuel tanker, the MV Tuvaq, arrived in the Gjoa Haven area on Sunday and began pumping fuel from the MV Nanny on Monday, according to officials with the Nunavut government, which contracted Woodward's to ship the fuel.

Officials told CBC News that a hose has been connected between both tankers and upward offive million litres of diesel is being siphoned off the Nanny in the hopes that the beached tanker will become light enough to float off the sandbar.

The government officials estimate that removing at least 2.5 million litres of diesel will float the tanker.

Inspectors from both the Canadian Coast Guard and Transport Canada are monitoring the operation.