Five dead, one missing after Canadian whale-watching boat sinks

Transportation Safety Board spokesperson Julie Leroux said three to four investigators are en route to Tofino and expected to arrive later today.

Stephen’s mother Julie was rescued from the stricken vessel, Leviathan II, along with 20 other people on board. Australian Associated Press reported that the 27 year-old Sydney man’s family said he was on the boat with his girlfriend and her family when it sank.

Asked how many were dead, British Columbia Coroner spokeswoman Barb McLintock earlier said in an email: “Multiple but we don’t yet have a firm number. This is something just totally out of the blue”, Bray said. Canada’s Transportation Safety Board said it was investigating the boat’s sinking. You can’t describe the looks on people that are lost.

Fisherman Clarence Smith said he was reeling his lines for halibut when his friend saw a flare shoot in the sky.

Describing his brother and nephew’s rescue effort, he said they first heard a whistle being blown and then the emergency calls on the radio. “From what we know at this stage it appears the incident happened so quickly the crew didn’t have an opportunity to send out a mayday”, she said.

“To the best of our knowledge there was no distress call. The safety and security of our passengers is our main concern and we are absolutely devastated by what took place on the water yesterday…This is a tragic accident and our thoughts and prayers go out to our passengers, crew and everyone impacted”.

Every crew member on board whale-watching boats in B.C. must have a Marine Emergency Duties certificate, said Andrew Lees, head naturalist with Five Star Whale Watching in Victoria.

He and four other TSB investors are in Tofino conducting an investigation that will include interviews, maintenance histories, meteorological data and operational policies, Poisson said.

“They said they had a hard time to [get close to the boat] because it was covered in diesel”.

Jamie Bray, owner of Jamie’s Whaling Station, told reporters at a news conference in Tofino, B.C., that the Leviathan II “has done this exact same trip for 20 years, twice a day”, and that the skipper has 20 years of experience, while the deck hands have three and five years’ experience.

In 1998, another whale-watching boat belonging to Jamie’s was involved in a fatal incident, the safety board said.

Investigators have said it could takes weeks to determine what caused the whale watching tragedy which killed five Brits.

One person was missing and the rest were rescued, a few by members of the local aboriginal community who rushed to help.

“I have received messages of disbelief and sorrow from many staff including those who have left and of course we are preparing for our students returning to school next week, many of whom knew Stephen”.

On March 22, 1998, a zodiac named “Ocean Thunder”, operated by Jamie’s Whaling Station, was overcome by a rogue wave and flipped, sending three passengers and one crew member into the frigid water.

“Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with their family, friends and David’s colleagues and we will be doing everything we can to support them”.

Lieutenant Paul Trenholm, from the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in British Columbia, said people from nearby indigenous First Nation villages had been first on the scene.

“The community response has been phenomenal”, said Osborne.

Locals held a dinner on Monday evening at the Tofino community hall to remember those affected by the tragedy.

“We had a couple of guys that were out doing a bit of fishing, and these guys saw this flare go up and responded”, says Alec Dick with the Ahousaht First Nation.