Tug company, senior official charged in fatal 2021 sinking off northwest B.C. coast
Charges have now been laid against a tug and barge company and one of its senior officials two years after a tug sank off British Columbia's coast south of Kitimat, killing the captain and one crew member.
Court documents show a total of eight counts have been laid against Wainwright Marine Services and James Bates, the president of Bates Properties Ltd., which includes Wainwright Marine as one of its operations.
The charges relate to alleged violations of occupational health and safety regulations under the Workers Compensation Act, and court records show a first appearance is scheduled next month in a Prince Rupert courtroom.
Fifty-eight-year-old tug captain Troy Pearson and 25-year-old crew member Charley Cragg died, while a third crew member survived, when the tug Ingenika went down in a storm in February 2021 while towing a barge.
Transport Canada's website shows Wainwright and Bates Properties were fined a total of $62,000 last year for violations that included not ensuring enough properly trained crew members were aboard the Ingenika.
The Transportation Safety Board initially completed a brief probe of the sinking but after a 10,000-name petition was submitted by Pearson's widow, the case was expanded to a Class 3 investigation, meaning it “may have significant consequences that attract a high level of public interest.”
The board's website shows the investigation is now in the report phase, but a release date has not yet been scheduled.
Family members of the victims also want the Ingenika to be raised from the bottom of the Gardner Canal on B.C.'s central coast, in part because the tug sank with 3,500 litres of diesel fuel aboard, but also because they believe the wreckage could indicate possible malfunctions, deficiencies or instability.
Transport Canada has said it would support the recovery, if directed by the safety board, but warned the tug lies at a depth that could complicate the effort.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
Explosion at train station leads to discovery of stolen car on Montreal's South Shore: police
Police are investigating after a BMW exploded in the St-Lambert Exo train station parking lot on Montreal's South Shore.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
A candidate for Germany's key party was beaten up while campaigning for European elections
A candidate for Chancellor Olaf Scholz's center-left party in next month's election for the European Parliament was beaten up and seriously injured while campaigning in an eastern city, the party said Saturday.
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.