The documentary series examining the dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. This week, the truckers launch a major effort to disassemble the base at Langley before the ice melts. The biggest load of the season gets stuck when a hole appears in the road; and Hugh sees a chance to overtake Eric.
The end of the ice-road season is approaching and the rapid melting of the ice has taken many by surprise. Every last piece of the Langley base must be dismantled and transported to land – but holes are already appearing in the ice nearby. Jerry Dusdal and Hugh Rowland do not like what they see. “The water’s warmer than the ice,” is Hugh’s evaluation.
“It’s time to go,” Jerry adds. “The warm water’s coming and I’m getting a little antsy about it.” With the heaviest equipment being given priority for transport, Eric Dufresne steps up to move one half of the derrick substructure – a massive chunk of metal weighing 40 tons. Eric is under strict instructions to travel no faster than 15mph – which means he is unlikely to overtake Hugh in the league table of total hauls. Both men have made 59 trips on the ice.
Hugh’s load consists of crates and pallets. It may not be the most exciting haul, but he knows that it is important nonetheless. “I always do loads no one else wants to touch and I don’t give a f***. It’s all gotta go to town!” he declares. Once on the open road, Hugh catches up with Eric and makes a risky move to pass his rival. Chugging along at 15mph, there is little Eric can do. He is more concerned with keeping his eyes on the holes opening up before him.
“The way the sun shines on the ice this morning, you can see the cracks happening!” he says. Elsewhere, Jerry enlists veteran hands Jody Reed and Brett Herbert to shift the biggest haul of all – the 66-ton derrick. This 135ft-high tower stands over the drilling site and must be lowered onto its side before it can be moved. Normally it would be dismantled before transportation, but time is of the essence, so Jerry uses two trucks to move it – one positioned at either end of the structure. Jody drives the front cab while Brett steers the rear truck backwards.
The operation is especially tense because of the mild conditions and the slippery road. “Right now it’s fairly slick because there ain’t a whole bunch of snow on the road and it’s been pretty warm,” says Brett. “You just slide like you’re on skates.” Sixty-two miles from Inuvik, disaster strikes when the two trucks encounter a major overflow. A crack in the ice is spilling water over the road. The drivers must wait for a pilot vehicle to arrive to guide them through the disintegrating road.
“200,000lbs sitting over 110ft of water, waiting. Might not be good,” is Brett’s laconic assessment of their situation. Bear Swensen, meanwhile, is tasked with transporting a two-storey-high mud tank from Langley to Inuvik. Bear is well aware that a sudden gust of wind could topple his load. “If there was a side wind, it would be just like a big sail – it could easily blow over,” he says. The ice beneath him is just 37 inches thick – one inch above the minimum threshold for safe driving.
While all the top truckers in Inuvik have been called in to help with the rig move at Langley, Rick Yemm is conspicuously absent. Rick was not asked to assist, and is stuck hauling dirty snow to Tuk. As ever, he is only too happy to put his foot on the gas. “They said at our safety meeting that you can drive the road however you feel comfortable,” he says. “This truck here doesn’t go fast enough to make me feel uncomfortable!” But will Rick’s bad habits come back to haunt him?
Post new comment