Technology enables machine to scan the hulls of ships that venture near the city.

Valerie Wilson Daily News

There is something new lurking in the waters around Nanaimo's harbour. It's not a giant sea monster, but a device that will be sure to spot anything that poses a potential security risk to the Port of Nanaimo.

Called a Seamor Remote Operated Vehicle, it provides the port with a special set of underwater eyes. Harbour master Andy Pitcher said the port has not had any security threats.

"But it's there just in case," he said about the ROV, built in Nanaimo by Seamor Marine.

"Obviously if we ever do get a threat it would be nice to be able to physically check our facilities ourselves and not risk any commercial or navy diver in the process."

Depending on the situation, it may even be too much of a risk to send in a diver to investigate.

"You can't just ask a diver to go down in case it turns out to be something positive," he said, referring to the suspicious object being positively identified as an explosive device.

The ROV was purchased by the port in mid-2007 at a cost of about $140,000. Security improvement funding provided by Transport Canada covered 75% of the total cost, including generators to operate the electrically powered ROV.

"If you use it once, and it actually finds a real bomb that does detonate, then $14,000 is a lot of money, but (the ROV) saved a life," Pitcher said. The unit is about the size of a large box of copy paper.

It can move forward, backward, up, down and sideways. Equipped with thrusters, it can travel across the top of the water, or at depths of more than 300 metres.

"The good thing about the ROV is that you can send it down and operate it underwater for as long as you want," Pitcher said.

"It is not time-restricted. Once you find what you are looking for, a diver can go to the location and retrieve it."

The ROV also has front and rear video cameras and images it captures can be watched from the surface.

Equipped with a grabbing arm, it can retrieve items weighing up to about five kilograms. The ROV also has sonar and a positioning system.

"If you have something in 300 or 400 feet of water, say a boat sank, you can send the unit down and turn the sonar on," Pitcher said. "Any images that look like it could be the boat, you just go for. It would cut down on the search time."

The ROV can also be used to scour the hull of any ship that comes into Nanaimo harbour, for example a cruise or cargo ship that has a specific threat on it.

It can also be used to search for missing people who are presumed drowned.

Security funding provided by the federal government was also used by the port to purchase a 30-foot aluminum security patrol boat.

The $275,000 boat is equipped with a siren, blue strobe lights and a loud hailer.

It will soon be outfitted with a night vision camera.

The boat will have a two-person crew and be primarily used for security, for example, continuous circling of cruise ships anchored in the harbour.

Pitcher doesn't think Nanaimo is a high-risk port for security threats.

It has never been in a situation that warranted raising its Transport Canada marine security rating above level one, which is normal for day-to-day operations.

"We are not high-risk and we certainly haven't had any indications that we are high-risk," he said.

"But it's good to be prepared. That's why we got the equipment. We aren't sitting around waiting for the Navy or Army bomb disposal (unit) to come up. We can actually be proactive when it comes to security."

VWilson@nanaimodailynews.com

250-729-4235

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