Bahamas Family Continues a Marine Tradition

"My dad, Earnest, Sr., has been in the marine business for over 50 years," says Ernest Dean, Jr. of Nassau, in the Bahamas. At the end of September, Dean Jr., who has a couple of decades in the business himself, will take delivery of a new boat named for his late brother Gurth Dean. The boat will fill a position in the family's mail and general cargo business, left vacant by the loss of a vessel last fall. Currently building at Rodriguez Boatworks in Bayou LaBatre, Ala. to an inhouse design, the 110 x 26-ft. boat will also have overnight accommodation for up to 18 passengers. Power is provided by a pair of Cummins' 14-litre six-cylinder N14-M main engines turning 440 hp each into Twin Disc model 5114 gears with a 4.86:1 ratio. Props are four-bladed 58 x 48 in. Auxiliary power is provided by a pair of two 60 kW gen sets powered by Cummins six-cylinder B-series engines. The significant electrical power will be more than adequate to meet the vessel's general needs and the two large capacity walk in freezers and one walk-in cooler. Designed with an 11-ft. molded depth carried well out toward the chine, the aft cabin boat has 11,000 cu. ft. of cargo space in two holds. A 15-ton hydraulic crane is located between the two holds. Tankage includes 10,000 gallons of fuel and 3500 gallons of water. One of more than a dozen boats with mail contracts in the Bahamas, the Capt. Gurth Dean will service the Abaco Islands.