Civic politicians attending their annual gathering of B.C. municipalities voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to petition the federal government to stop the planned cuts to Canadian Coast Guard operations in coastal communities.
The vote occurred in Victoria at the Union of B.C. Municipalities and is similar to a motion passed last week by Vancouver city council. Vancouvers interest lies in the planned closure next spring of the Coast Guard base in Kitsilano, where the agencys 12 staff operate two rescue vessels and attend up to 300 calls per year.
The Courier reported Wednesday that an internal report by the Coast Guards rescue centre in Esquimalt suggested an increase in casualties because of the $900,000 cut announced by Fisheries and Oceans Canada.
Requests for an interview with Coast Guard officials to discuss the rescue centres report were denied by the agencys communications department. Instead, the Courier was directed to a Coast Guard website that outlines myths versus facts in the debate around the closure of the Kitsilano base.
The rescue centre in Esquimalt, which is commonly referred to as the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, is responsible for planning, coordinating, controlling and conducting aeronautical and maritime search and rescue operations within Victorias search and rescue region.
Its report suggests the reliance on the Coast Guards Sea Island base at Vancouver International Airport could lead to casualties in the waters off Vancouver. The additional time to respond may lead to increased casualties since the number of incidents is great in this area.
The report also cited concerns with volunteers attending suicides from the bridges and the loss of knowledge of staff at the Kitsilano base, where many employees have worked for decades. The Coast Guard has said there will be no negative impact in the agencys ability to respond to emergencies without the Kitsilano base in operation. Under the facts section on the Coast Guards website, the agency says:
- The Sea Island hovercraft is not the only response unit for Vancouver Harbour.
- The mix of resources that can be called upon include emergency responders, any other vessel of opportunity and five volunteer Royal Canadian Search and Rescue units.
- An inshore rescue boat will operate in the harbour in the summer months and work with the Royal Canadian Search and Rescue units.
The first priority of the Canadian Coast Guard is, and always will be, the safety of mariners, said Terence Davis, the regional director of communications for the Coast Guard, in an email to the Courier. Search and rescue experts within the Coast Guard remain confident that we will be able to respond quickly and effectively to distress incidents on the water.
At last weeks council meeting, deputy city manager Sadhu Johnston presented a report to council in which he concluded peoples safety will be at risk because of the closure of the Kitsilano base. Johnstons conclusion was based on statistics city staff gathered about the bases call load, response times, the number of other marine agencies available and meetings with Coast Guard representatives.
Vision Vancouver councillors Tim Stevenson and Kerry Jang predicted lives will be lost when the base closes. Both the Vancouver Police Department and Vancouver Fire-Rescue have sent letters to the federal government stating their mandate is not to respond to search and rescue emergencies on the water.
Twitter: @Howellings
