Canadian, U.S. coast guards train for tour vessel disaster off Victoria
A large-scale Canadian Coast Guard exercise was held near the Trial Islands off Victoria on Thursday, with members of the U.S. Coast Guard and local first responders.
The scenario was a whale-watching vessel catching fire, with multiple injured people in the water and on the shore.
A large-scale Canadian Coast Guard exercise was held near the Trial Islands off Victoria on Thursday, with members of the U.S. Coast Guard and local first responders. (CTV News)
Several coast guard cadets played the injured victims onboard the burning boat, along with life-sized dummies floating in the water.
Rescue boats transported the injured passengers to Ogden Point where paramedics and firefighters s were waiting to asses and treat the victims.
The coast guard says the purpose of the on-water training is to practise search and rescue techniques, risk assessment and other related skills in case of a real disaster.
“It’s a constant risk we have here on the coast and we need to be ready to respond and these types of exercises are the best way to increase that level of preparedness,” says Mariah McCooey, the western region superintendent of maritime search and rescue for the Canadian Coast Guard.
“Getting out there on the water and testing out our interoperability, communication and then that key infrastructure with the shore side and the handoff of patients.”
The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Blue Shark participated in the exercise, bringing an extra element of realism to the scenario.
McCooey says the Canadian and US coast guards work regularly with each other during incidents in the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
“It really did put everyone through the test,” says McCooey. “That’s really important for figuring out where we have areas to improve and also the things we were doing really well.”
Although the full analysis of the mock disaster is not yet complete, the rescue exercise was considered a success Thursday.
The Canadian Coast Guard is planning similar training events in the region next year.
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