The B.C. Coroners Service has made recommendations to Transport Canada involving life-jackets and emergency position-indicating radio beacons, stemming from its investigation of the drownings of six people during a whale-watching trip off Tofino.
Life-jackets should be worn by all passengers on the outer decks of vessels greater than 15 gross tons and carrying more than 12 passengers, the coroners service said.
It also called for a review of regulations to determine whether to expand the class of vessels that are required to carry emergency position-indicating radio beacons.
The Leviathan II capsized near Tofino on Oct. 25, 2015, sending all 27 aboard into the water. Five Britons and a man from Australia were killed.
The investigation found none of the passengers was wearing flotation aids, which is optional for passengers on an outer deck, according to Transport Canada regulations.
The coroner’s report said the emergency radio beacon on board was delayed in sending a distress call.
“Following the capsizing of the Leviathan II, approximately 20 minutes elapsed before a distress signal could be successfully transmitted, during which time the passengers were in the cold water without flotation aids, hindering their chances of survival,” the report said.
Investigating coroner Courtney Cote concluded the six passengers died from drowning and classified the deaths as accidental.
The capsizing was also investigated by the RCMP and the Transportation Safety Board.
The Transportation Safety Board concluded in June last year that a large, breaking wave caused the vessel to flip.
The board said it was only by chance that a crew member was able to spot a flare in the wreckage and use it to draw attention from nearby fishers, who notified search-and-rescue crews.
The board recommended that all commercial passenger vessels operating beyond sheltered waters carry emergency radio beacons that activate automatically to transmit a boat’s position.
It also recommended that passenger vessels across Canada adopt risk-management processes that identify hazards, such as areas known to have large breaking waves.
TSB chairwoman Kathy Fox said none of the passengers on the Leviathan ll was wearing life-jackets. They struggled to keep their heads and mouths above water in heavy swells, and some passengers ingested sea water, oil and fuel.
The coroner said the ship’s owner, Jamie’s Whaling Station, made changes to its procedures and practices to prevent further incidents ahead of the transportation board’s report.
Those changes include mandatory radio check-ins every 30 minutes, improved access to life-jackets on vessels and the addition of emergency position-indicating radio beacons to all vessels, the report said.
Jamie’s Whaling Station operations manager Corene Inouye said the coroner’s recommendations are similar to those of the Transportation Safety Board.
“We are taking the steps that we can at this point,” she said. “We are always open to improvement when it comes to the safety of our customers.”
The company already requires passengers on all of its nine vessels to wear life-jackets on the outer decks.
“We implemented that measure immediately after the accident,” Inouye said.
Adult passengers are required to wear inflatable life-jackets at all times. The inflatable life-jackets are not safe for children and youth, who are required to wear foam life-jackets on the outer deck, she said.
Transport Canada said in a statement that it has reviewed the coroner’s report. It did not indicate whether the recommendations will be implemented.
“The safety and security of Canadians and those visiting our country are a top priority for the Government of Canada,” Marie-Anyk Côté, senior media relations adviser for Transport Canada, wrote in an email. “Transport Canada remains committed to working with the Transportation Safety Board, other government organizations, and the marine community to continuously enhance the safety of small commercial vessels, including whale-watching vessels.”
Transport Canada already requires small commercial vessels to carry one Canadian-approved life-jacket of appropriate size for each person on board and requires crew to give passengers a safety briefing and instructions for putting on life-jackets before the boat departs.
“The department supports efforts to encourage more options for life-jacket design to help vessel operators in providing this life-saving equipment,” said the email. “The department will consult with stakeholders on life-jacket requirements and consider factors, including vessel size, to determine next steps.”
