For other ships of the same name, see HMCS Kootenay.
| HMCS Kootenay (DDE 258) | |
|---|---|
 HMCS Kootenay at Pearl Harbor in 1986 | |
| Career (Canada) |   |
| Namesake: | Kootenay River |
| Builder: | Burrard Dry Dock Ltd., North Vancouver[1] |
| Laid down: | 21 August 1952 |
| Launched: | 15 June 1954 |
| Commissioned: | 7 March 1959 |
| Decommissioned: | 18 November 1995[2] |
| Refit: |
7 January 1972 (IRE)[3] 21 October 1983 (DELEX)[3] |
| Honours and awards: | Atlantic 1943-45, Normandy 1944, English Channel 1944, Biscay 1944 |
| Fate: | Reportedly sunk as an artificial reef off Mexico in 2001.[3][4] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type: | Restigouche-class destroyer |
| Displacement: |
As built: 2366 t normal, 2800 t (deep load) After IRE: 2390 tnormal, 2900 t (deep load)[5] |
| Length: |
366 ft (111.6 m) (waterline) 371 ft (113.1 m) (overall) |
| Beam: | 42 ft (12.8 m) |
| Draught: |
13.17 ft (4.0 m) normal 14 ft (4.3 m) deep load |
| Propulsion: | 2-shaft English-Electric geared steam turbines, 2 Babcock and Wilcox water-tube boilers 30,000 shp |
| Speed: | 28 knots (51.9 km/h) |
| Range: | 4,750 nautical miles (8,797.0 km) at 14 knots (25.9 km/h) |
| Complement: |
As built: 249 By the late 1970s: 250 = 13 officers 237 men[7] |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
As built:[3]
After IRE:[3]
After DELEX:[3]
|
| Electronic warfare & decoys: |
As built:[3]
After IRE:[3]
After DELEX:[3]
|
| Armament: |
After IRE/DELEX:[3]
|
| Aircraft carried: | none |
HMCS Kootenay (DDE 258) was a Restigouche-class destroyer that served in the Royal Canadian Navy from 1959-1996.
She was the fifth ship in her class and the second vessel to carry the designation HMCS Kootenay.
Kootenay was laid down on 21 August 1952 at Burrard Dry Dock, North Vancouver and launched on 15 June 1954. She was officially commissioned into the RCN on 7 March 1959 and carried the pennant number 258 as a destroyer escort.
On 23 October 1969 at 8:21 AM Kootenay suffered the worst peacetime accident in the history of the Royal Canadian Navy during routine full-power trials when her starboard gearbox reached an estimated temperature of 650 degrees Celsuis and exploded. The explosion and the ensuing fire killed 9 crew members and injured at least 53 others.[11]
Kootenay was selected by the RCN for the Improved Restigouche (IRE) project and completed this refit on 7 January 1972. She was also selected as one of 10 destroyers in the Destroyer Life Extension (DELEX) project and completed this refit on 21 October 1983.
In 1989 Kootenay collided with a merchant ship and suffered damage to her bow which was repaired using the bow from her sister ship HMCS Chaudiere (DDE 235).[3]
She was paid off from active service in the RCN on 18 November 1995.[12]
She was reportedly sunk as an artificial reef off Mexico in 2001.[3][4][13][14]
Ship's Bell[]
The Christening Bells Project at CFB Esquimalt's Naval and Military Museum includes information from the ship's bell of HMCS Kootenay (2nd) 1959 - 1995, which was used for baptism of babies onboard ship 1959 - 1988. The bell is currently held by the CFB Esquimalt Naval & Military Museum, Esquimalt, BC.[15]
Commanding officers[]
| Dates | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| 7 March 1959 | 11 July 1960 | Cdr R.J. Pickford[16] |
| 11 July 1960 | 19 September 1962 | Cdr H. Shorten[16] |
| 19 September 1962 | 15 January 1965 | Cdr D.H. Ryan[16] |
| 15 January 1965 | 1 June 1966 | Cdr R.G. Pratt[16] |
| 1 June 1966 | 1 July 1967 | Cdr W.P. Rikely[16] |
| 1 July 1967 | 15 November 1968 | Cdr C.G. McMorris[16] |
| 15 November 1968 | 21 March 1969 | LCdr M. Tremblay[16] |
| 21 March 1969 | 14 January 1970 | Cdr N St.C.Norton[16] |
| No commanding officer during IRE refit | ||
| 12 January 1972 | 17 February 1973 | Cdr J.L. Creech[16] |
| 17 February 1973 | 15 June 1974 | Cdr R.H. Kirby[16] |
| 15 June 1974 | 16 July 1976 | Cdr J. Spalding[16] |
| 16 July 1976 | 26 June 1978 | Cdr B.P. Moore[16] |
| 26 June 1978 | 11 August 1980 | Cdr B. Johnston[16] |
| 11 August 1980 | 28 June 1982 | Cdr B.H. Beckett[16] |
| 28 June 1982 | 9 January 1983 | Cdr S.K. Jessen[16] |
| No commanding officer during DELEX refit | ||
| 24 January 1984 | 5 July 1985 | Cdr P.C. Young[16] |
| 5 July 1985 | 30 July 1987 | Cdr B.R. Melville[16] |
| 30 July 1987 | 21 July 1989 | Cdr J. Dickson[16] |
| No commanding officer whilst bow was repaired | ||
| 21 July 1991 | 25 May 1992 | Cdr J.D. Fraser[16] |
| 25 May 1992 | 31 July 1992 | LCdr M.R. Bellows[16] |
| 31 July 1992 | 21 June 1994 | Cdr D.J. Kyle[16] |
| 21 June 1994 | 18 December 1996 | Cdr R.H. Dawe[16] |
References[]
- ↑ Conways and'Combat Fleets of the World say Burrard, Vancouver.
However dawndreamer.ca says Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel QC, which is probably an error. - ↑ Ships Served on by Owner of Dawn Dreamer
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 RESTIGOUCHE Class DDE (escort destroyer)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 St. Laurent Class' Final Disposition This gives the year of scuttling as 2000.
- ↑ Conways says 2000 tons standard displacement, 2600 deep load.
Janes Fighting Ships 1963-64 says 2366 tons standard, 2900 tons deep load
Combat Fleets of the World 1978-79 says 2390 tons displacement, 2900 full load.
dawndreamer.ca says 2,390 tonnes displacement. - ↑ Janes Fighting Ships 1963-64
Conways claims 290. - ↑ Combat Fleets of the World 1978-79
- ↑ Note that Conways claims that these ships carried 2 x 40mm Boffin guns as built, this is not supported by Janes Fighting Ships 1963-64 or Barrie and Macherson's book Cadillac of Destroyers
- ↑ The Postwar Naval Revolution page 161 says of the St Laurent class: "As in the case of the Type 12, the design included provision for long-range homing torpedoes (in this case BIDDER [Mk20E] or the UK Mark 35). They were never fitted however."
Conways does not mention the ASW torpedo tubes
Janes Fighting Ships 1963-64 does mention "improved homing torpedoes" - ↑ Note that Conways does not mention the illumination rocket launchers
- ↑ The captain reported 7 killed, 9 medically evacuated, and 1 missing. However the final death toll was 9 killed. The 8th man killed was missing in the engine room until mid-afternoon. The 9th man killed died of smoke inhalation onboard HMCS Bonaventure two days after the fire. See 10 page account of explosion aboard HMCS Kootenay See also the book "We Are as One" by LCdr (retd) Gordon Forbes.
- ↑ Ships Served on by Owner of Dawn Dreamer
- ↑ www.stokers.ca The Steamers Where did they end up?
- ↑ There is a very small picture of HMCS Kootenay on www.trainboard.com World Travel - Mexico (Guerrero) 2001 - Part I with the following comment:
"Let's talk about this ship a bit more since this is part of "ReefGate" and was big news here from 1999 to 2001. This Canadian Naval ship (and Restigouche - DDE 257) was towed from Canada to here to become an artificial reef on Navy Day, June 1, 2000. Well, there was a question on how they were purchased and here they sat until it was cleared up in 2001. Shortly after I took this photo the Kootenay was sunk near the Restigouche that was sunk just before our arrival."
There is also a thread about Kootenay's fate on Benthic Canada The thread contains the claim that "Kootenay is believed to be tied up at the Jardin Alvaro Obregon, Manzanillo's "central" plaza. It is right on the harbour front opposite the main outer dock." However a later posting states that this was a false alarm: "looks like some people cannot tell the difference between a Canadian warship and a Mexican navy refueling ship". There is a larger copy of the photograph of Kootenay, which is entitled: "HMCS Kootenay (DDE 258), Acapulco, Mexico May 11, 2001, by Darren E Hadley. The photograph shows at least five holes cut in the starboard hull to facilitate access for divers.
The above two sources are not reliable, but are quoted because they demonstrate that the assertion that Kootenay was scuttled as a reef is disputable. - ↑ http://www.navalandmilitarymuseum.org/resource_pages/bells/bells.asp Christening bells
- ↑ 16.00 16.01 16.02 16.03 16.04 16.05 16.06 16.07 16.08 16.09 16.10 16.11 16.12 16.13 16.14 16.15 16.16 16.17 16.18 16.19 16.20 16.21 MacPherson, Ken and Barrie, Ron The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910-2002, pub Vanwell, 2002, third edition, ISBN 1-55125-072-1
- Canadian Navy of Yesterday & Today: Restigouche-class destroyer escort
- Chumbley, Stephen and Gardner, Robert (Ed.) Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships, 1947-1995. Conway Maritime Press, 1995. ISBN 0-85177-605-1.
- Photo of HMCS Kootenay (DDE 258)
- Ships served on by owner of dawndreamer.ca
- 10 page account of explosion aboard HMCS Kootenay (DDE 258)
- Couhat, Jean Labayle, Combat Fleets of the World 1978-79 Arms and Armour Press, 1978.
- Janes Fighting Ships 1963-64
- Friedman, Norman, The Postwar Naval Revolution, Naval Institute Press, 1986. ISBN 0-87021-952-9.
- Forbes, Gordon, We Are as One, Baico Publishing, 2010. ISBN 978-1-926596-94-5
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The original article can be found at HMCS Kootenay (DDE 258) and the edit history here.