Vigil Marks Five Years Since Tugboat Tragedy
On Wednesday, a vigil will be held in Vancouver to commemorate the fifth anniversary of a tragic tugboat accident that claimed the lives of two men in northern British Columbia. Charley Cragg’s mother, Genevieve Cragg, will join members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada (ILWU) Local 400 to advocate for stronger safety regulations in the tugboat industry. The event aims to highlight ongoing safety concerns that remain unresolved five years after the incident.
Call for Enhanced Safety Regulations
The vigil, scheduled for 12:30 p.m. PT outside the Transport Canada office on Burrard Street, seeks to draw attention to the lack of progress in improving safety standards for tugboat operations. Genevieve Cragg will stand alongside union representatives, including ILWU 400 president Jason Woods, who has criticized the government for its slow response to safety issues that contributed to the fatal sinking of the tugboat Ingenika on February 11, 2021.
Woods expressed frustration that the same problems that led to the tragedy still persist today. He emphasized the need for updates to marine personnel regulations and the closing of loopholes that allow under-tonnage vessels to operate without inspection. “We have a class of vessels that could spend their entire lifetime in service without ever being inspected,” he stated. The Ingenika, which sank after 50 years of service, had never been inspected by the Transportation Safety Board (TSB), according to their investigation.
Woods also raised concerns about the use of vessels not designed for towing heavy equipment, urging Transport Canada to establish clear standards for what commercial vessels can tow. “We don’t want to just see any fish boat throw a line on a barge and start towing it up the coast,” he said, underscoring the urgency of the call to action at the vigil. The Ingenika was originally designed for freshwater log towing, not for the demands of sea lanes.
CBC News has reached out to Transport Canada and Minister MacKinnon’s office for comments regarding the union’s demands for regulatory changes and is awaiting a response.
Details of the Tragic Incident
The tugboat accident involved pilot Troy Pearson, 58, crew member Charley Cragg, 25, and another crew member, Zac Dolan. They were towing a barge from Prince Rupert to Kitimat when the Ingenika began taking on water in challenging conditions in the narrow Gardner Canal. While all three crew members managed to escape the sinking vessel, Cragg and Pearson drowned before reaching a life raft. Dolan was rescued hours later but suffered from hypothermia and frostbite.
A TSB report indicated that Pearson and Cragg drowned due to their immersion suits being only partially fastened, which can lead to water intake and increased risk of hypothermia. The report also noted that the crew had not practiced using any of the safety equipment.
