Queen of the North crew should be recognized as heroes

Brave professionalism in safely evacuating 99 of 101 passengers has never been adequately acknowledged

Victoria (20 March 2007) - The B.C. Ferry and Marine Workers' Union (BCFMWU) says crew members of the Queen of the North should be recognized as heroes for the brave role they played in evacuating the vessel after it ran aground in the Queen Charlotte Islands on March 22 last year.

Ninety-nine of the 101 passengers and crew members aboard the vessel survived thanks to the prompt action of crew members and the assistance of the Canadian Coast Guard and fishing boats from the nearby First Nations Village of Hartley Bay. Two remaining passengers, Gerald Foisey and Shirley Rosette of 100 Mile House, B.C., are still missing and presumed to have drowned.

The BCFMWU is an affiliate of the B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union (BCGEU), a Component of the National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE).

“It has never been acknowledged officially,” Richard Goode, acting first vice-president of the union, says of the professional role the crew played. "The company (B.C. Ferries) has never made a big splash. I am not attacking the company. But that’s been a contentious issue with the union, that our people have never been made heroes, and they were heroes.”

Goode says everyone is saddened by the lives lost but the outcome could have been far more tragic if not for the swift action taken by the crew after the vessel struck ground, ripping open a hole in its hull. The cabins of the crew were located below the waterline. Passenger cabins were above.

“The water was rushing into these (crew) cabins,” Goode told the Victoria Times-Colonist. “Most of the passengers were sleeping and the crew had to make their way to them, wake them up and get them out.”

In the year that has passed, many people have been cited for assisting with the rescue but it was the ship's crew that actually "got the people off that vessel" and they deserved to be recognized for their duty and bravery, Goode says.

B.C. Ferries, the privately-run but government-owned agency that runs the ferries, plans to fly flags at half mast on all its vessels on Thursday, the first anniversary date of the sinking. It is also working with families of the victims to arrange for a private memorial ceremony. NUPGE

More information:
• Union to release report on sinking of B.C. Ferries vessel
• B.C. Ferries cuts requirements for captains
• B.C. Ferries had no head count of passengers
• B.C. Ferry report could be ready by September
• Safety official stands by claim that B.C. Ferries was warned
• Former safety director sues B.C. Ferries for ignoring warnings
• B.C. ferry workers' union calls for safety audit
• B.C. Ferries failed to provide adequate training of ferry crew
• Ceremony marks sinking of Queen of the North
• Ferry and marine union gives credit to ferry crew
• Ferry with 101 passengers aboard sinks in B.C.