This smaller general cargo vessel was launched as the Ontadoc (2) for N. M. Paterson & Sons Ltd., Thunder Bay, ON on January 10, 1975 with her first sailing on April 24, 1975. She was built by Collingwood Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., Collingwood, ON and is powered by two 2,000 horsepower V-12 cylinder Allen diesel engines giving her a rated service speed of 12 knots. Her 4 hatches feed into 4 compartments and can carry 7,500 tons at her mid-summer draft of 24′ 09″. Since she was constructed with deep-sea capabilities, she has carried cargos to Holland and the Canadian Arctic. In 1989, she was equipped with 2 15-ton cranes to better serve Canadian Arctic communities.
The vessel was sold to Desgagnés Transport Inc., Quebec City, PQ in June of 1990 and was renamed Mélissa Desgagnés at that time. In April of 1993, she was noted to have run aground in the St. Lawrence Seaway west of the Eisenhower Lock while carrying wheat from Windsor, ON to Newfoundland.
While laid up in Quebec City, the Mélissa Desgagnés’ Canadian registry was closed July 21, 2016. She was sold off-lakes and renamed Ethan and registered in Tanzania. The registry was again changed to Togo and departed Quebec City for Freeport, Bahamas on December 21, 2019.
Written by George Wharton.
| Ship Particulars | |
| Length | 355′ 00″ (108.21m) |
| Beam | 49′ 00″ (14.94m) |
| Depth | 30′ 06″ (9.3m) |
| Midsummer Draft | 24′ 09″ (7.54m) |
| Capacity | 7,500 tons |
| Engine Power | 4,000 bhp diesel |
| Previous Names | |
| Ontadoc (2) | 1975 – 1990 |
| Mélissa Desgagnés | 1990 – 2016 |
| Ethan | 2016 – Today |