VANCOUVER — Dozens of onlookers turned out Saturday afternoon to watch as demolition crews sent a former Canadian warship to its watery resting place off the B.C. coast.
After years of legal wrangling, the Artificial Reef Society of British Columbia succeeded in its bid to sink the former HMCS Annapolis in the waters (off Gambier Island) northwest of Vancouver.
It took less than two minutes from the time the explosive charges were set off for the decommissioned warship to sink.
The sound of cheers and boat horns filled the smoke-filled air as the ship's bow finally slipped under the water.
Last month, a federal court judge dismissed concerns raised by a local environmental group that paint on the ship's hull contained toxic chemicals.
Society spokesman Rick Wall said the ship will be used for underwater habitat renewal and as a destination for recreational divers.
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