Boating on the rugged West Coast of Vancouver Island is serious business. Residents of Tofino and the Ahousaht First Nation on Flores Island were reminded of this when a water taxi carrying six people between the two communities hit rocks in foggy conditions.
The water taxi Rocky Pass was on a morning run to Flores Island when it crashed 14 kilometres from Tofino near Catface Mountain.
Four people were injured. According to Paul Nixon, of Tofino’s Canadian Coast Guard station, the male driver of the water taxi and three female passengers suffered “significant injuries,” including “multiple broken bones.”
“The injured were triaged on-site, given first aid and transported to docks,” Nixon said in a Times Colonist report.
An ambulance took the injured from Tofino’s First Street dock to Tofino Hospital. They were later transported to Victoria General Hospital.
Ahousaht’s Coastal Nations Coast Guard Auxiliary boat was first to respond at about 9:50 a.m., followed by the Coast Guard’s high-speed zodiac and boats from the Ahousaht First Nation.
Ahousaht Chief Greg Louie said the boat driver was born and raised in Ahousaht and is “an experienced mariner.” Another of the injured is an Ahousaht member living away from the First Nation. The other two victims are a mental health counsellor and a cultural support worker, said Louie.
Flores Island is about 20 kilometres from Tofino and accessible only by air or water. Ahousaht has about 2,100 residents.
The crash tore a huge gash in the vessel’s bow and left a jagged hole on the driver’s side of the windshield. Visibility was low and Environment Canada had issued a fog advisory on the morning of the accident.
The RCMP has seized the water taxi. Investigation and interviews have confirmed that visibility was poor, according to Sgt. Chris Manseau. Transport Canada, the Transportation Safety Board and Work Safe BC are also involved in determining the circumstances that led to the crash.
The quick response from Ahousaht boats and calm seas made a big difference, said Coast Guard spokesman Paul Nixon.
“Having the local First Nations help out was phenomenal,” said Nixon, noting “vessels of opportunity” such as the Ahousaht 1, Big Baby and Ahousaht Raider provided needed support. “There were a lot of positives in this incident. It happened in the daylight hours, there wasn’t a lot of wind or wave action and there were support vessels close by.”
Chief Louie said the Ahousaht have a history of being quick to respond to rescues — from recent float-plane crashes, to sightseeing vessels in distress, to hikers and kayakers in trouble.
“Our people don’t see colour, they don’t see weather. It doesn’t matter the time of day, when someone is in distress, our boats and our people go out.”
Boating on the rugged West Coast of Vancouver Island is serious business. Residents of Tofino and the Ahousaht First Nation on Flores Island were reminded of this when a water taxi carrying six people between the two communities hit rocks in foggy conditions.
The water taxi, Rocky Pass, was on a morning run to Flores Island when it crashed 14 kilometres from Tofino near Catface Mountain.
According to Paul Nixon of Tofino’s Canadian Coast Guard station, the male driver of the water taxi and three female passengers suffered “significant injuries,” including “multiple broken bones.”
“The injured were triaged on-site, given first aid and transported to docks,” Nixon said in a Times Colonist report.
An ambulance took the injured from Tofino’s First Street dock to Tofino Hospital. They were later transported to Victoria General Hospital.
Ahousaht’s Coastal Nations Coast Guard Auxiliary boat was first to respond at about 9:50 a.m., followed by the Coast Guard’s high-speed zodiac and ships from the Ahousaht First Nation.
Ahousaht Chief Greg Louie said the water taxi driver was born and raised in Ahousaht and is “an experienced mariner.” Another of the injured is an Ahousaht member living away from the First Nation. The other two victims are a mental health counsellor and a cultural support worker, said Louie.
Flores Island is about 20 kilometres from Tofino and accessible only by air or water. Ahousaht has about 2,100 residents.
The crash tore a huge gash in the vessel’s bow and left a jagged hole on the driver’s side of the windshield. Visibility was low, and Environment Canada had issued a fog advisory on the morning of the accident.
The RCMP has seized the water taxi. Investigation and interviews have confirmed that visibility was poor, according to Sgt. Chris Manseau. Transport Canada, the Transportation Safety Board and Work Safe BC are also involved in determining the circumstances that led to the crash.
The quick response from Ahousaht boats and calm seas made a big difference, said Coast Guard spokesman Paul Nixon.
“Having the local First Nations help out was phenomenal,” said Nixon, noting “vessels of opportunity” such as the Ahousaht 1, Big Baby and Ahousaht Raider provided needed support. “There were a lot of positives in this incident. It happened in the daylight hours, there wasn’t a lot of wind or wave action, and there were support vessels close by.”
Chief Louie said the Ahousaht have a history of quickly responding in rescue situations — from recent floatplane crashes, to sightseeing vessels in distress, to hikers and kayakers in trouble.
“Our people don’t see colour, they don’t see weather. It doesn’t matter the time of day, when someone is in distress, our boats and our people go out.”
Last October, the Rocky Pass water taxi was involved in another accident. A Tofino Air floatplane carrying 5 passengers and a pilot was attempting to land when it stuck the Rocky Pass in Tofino Harbour. The floatplane passengers were shaken but luckily got away with bumps, scrapes and bruises. Nobody on the water taxi was seriously injured.
One Ahousaht fisherman, Ken Brown, helped save 11 people during the tragic capsizing in 2015 of the Leviathan II whale-watching boat. He was also the first to respond last fall when the floatplane hit the Rocky Pass.“I’ve saved 15 people in my life now,” Brown told the Vancouver Sun. “I’m OK. But there’s still some heavy-heartedness in me. My mind is still thinking about everything that’s gone on.”
