Canadian authorities: Whale vessel sinks, at least 3 dead

She said seven were stable and one was in serious condition, but stable.

Martin said two people were brought in on a Zodiac boat. Instead, the men pulled in three bodies, he said.

“It wasn’t even blowing hard”, he said.

Lt. Commander Desmond James of the center said the boat was partially submerged 8 nautical miles (12 nautical kilometers) west of Tofino.

The boat is named Leviathan II and is owned by Jamie’s Whaling Station & Adventure Centres, according to the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre. The hospital is not far from the dock.

When contacted an employee who answered would not take any questions or confirm the company operated the boat.

“All our attention now is on our passengers and crew so we’ll be providing information as soon as the time is appropriate”.

The mayor of Tofino commended locals for their contributions.

“The ambulances – it was just like one after another after another”, McLelllan said. “The waters weren’t choppy so I don’t see what could have caused the boat to sink, but you never know in these waters unfortunately”, he said.

“The sea was three to four metres, a fairly big sea, but not much wind or too unusual for the conditions we deal with on a regular basis out here”, Mr Forde, who took part in the rescue for several hours, told Global television.

Jamie’s Whaling Station was one of the first of its kind off Vancouver Island and had been around for many years, Mr Forde said.

This isn’t the first capsizing incident on the whale watching company’s record.

Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada are being deployed to investigate the sinking of vessel, which the agency identified as Leviathan II.

In 1998 one of their vessels capsized during an excursion, sending all four people on board into the water.

That year, a boat operator and a passenger aboard the boat “Ocean Thunder” were tossed overboard and drowned in turbulent waters during a whale watching trip, the board said.