ZB 304

History
Name:	ZB 304
Owner:	Zidell Barges, a subsidiary of Zidell Marine
Operator:	ABS Ocean
Builder:	Bergeron Industries
Yard number:	1504
Launched:	1982
Out of service:	1997
Fate:	Ran aground
Status:	Used as floating dock Denali at Dutch Harbor, Alaska
General characteristics
Class and type:	Freight barge
Tonnage:	4238 GT
Length:	300'
Beam:	90'
Height:	18.5'

Last updated March 01, 2019

The 300-foot × 90-foot × 18.5-foot US-flagged, ABS Ocean deck barge ZB 304 was “heavy-built” in 1982 for Zidell Barges by Bergeron Industries with a spoon bow and stern rake integrating three longitudinal and seven transverse bulkheads and using ¹⁄₂-inch sides and bottom plate and ⁵⁄₈-inch deck plate.^[1]

The Zidell Companies are a group of family-owned companies based in Portland, Oregon. They include Zidell Marine, a ship construction company which, from 1961 until 2017, specialized in the building of barges, and Tube Forgings of America Inc.

ZB 304 was lost under tow in 1997 as a result of a parted towline and grounded during heavy weather near Alsek River in the Gulf of Alaska 38 miles east of Yakutat, Alaska. A salvage crew was dispatched by air to the casualty to evaluate the situation and prepare the barge for refloating. M/V Salvage Chief , operated by Fred Divine Diving and Salvage Company, responded from Astoria, Oregon with specialized salvage gear which was transferred by helicopter and connected to fittings previously installed on ZB 304. Three six-ton salvage anchors were deployed and three tow lines were connected to ZB 304, which was refloated and towed to Yakutat. The cargo was transferred to a second barge and delivered to its destination by Dunlap Towing Company. The barge was declared a total loss but over $3 million worth of cargo and equipment was saved through the efforts of Fred Divine Diving and Salvage Company.^[2]

The Alsek River is a wilderness river flowing from Yukon into Northern British Columbia and into Alaska. It enters the Gulf of Alaska at Dry Bay.

The Gulf of Alaska is an arm of the Pacific Ocean defined by the curve of the southern coast of Alaska, stretching from the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island in the west to the Alexander Archipelago in the east, where Glacier Bay and the Inside Passage are found.

Yakutat, Alaska Home Rule Borough in Alaska, United States

The City and Borough of Yakutat is a borough in the U.S. state of Alaska and was the name of a former city within it. The name is Tlingit, Yaakwdáat but it originally derives from an Eyak name diyaʼqudaʼt and was influenced by the Tlingit word yaakw. The borough covers an area about six times the size of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, making it one of the largest counties in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 662, down from 680 in 2000.

Floating Dock Denali

ZB 304 was towed back to Puget Sound where the American Construction Company of Everett, Washington refitted the barge and sold it in 2005 to Magone Marine Services of Dutch Harbor, Alaska where it serves as floating dock Denali. Marcon International Incorporated of Coupeville, Washington was the broker in the sale.^[1]

Puget Sound sound along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington

Puget Sound is a sound along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and two minor connections to the open Pacific Ocean via the Strait of Juan de Fuca—Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and Deception Pass and Swinomish Channel being the minor.

Everett is the county seat of and the largest city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is located 25 miles (40 km) north of Seattle and is one of the main cities in the metropolitan area and Puget Sound region. Everett is the seventh-largest city in Washington state and had a total population of 103,019 at the 2010 census. The city is located at the mouth of the Snohomish River along Port Gardner Bay, an inlet of Possession Sound.

Coupeville, Washington Town in Washington, United States

Coupeville is a town on Whidbey Island, in Island County, Washington, United States.

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References

1 2 "2005 Sales and Charters," Marcon International, Inc.<http://www.marcon.com/library/sales_reports/2005Sales.pdf>
↑ "Wreck Removal." Fred Devine Diving and Salvage Company. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 July 2010. <http://www.freddevinedivingandsalvage.com/wreckremoval.html>.

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[marcon-1] 1 2 "2005 Sales and Charters," Marcon International, Inc.<http://www.marcon.com/library/sales_reports/2005Sales.pdf>

[2] "Wreck Removal." Fred Devine Diving and Salvage Company. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 July 2010. <http://www.freddevinedivingandsalvage.com/wreckremoval.html>.