Probe on 2022 ferry crash finds 'safety deficiencies': TSB
CBC
It's still unclear what led a Toronto Island ferry to crash into a dock two years ago, injuring roughly 20 people and sending six to the hospital.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) announced its findings at a news conference Monday morning.
"Our investigation found several safety deficiencies," TSB chair Kathy Fox told reporters.
The Sam McBride ferry was returning to the Jack Layton Terminal just after 5 p.m. on Aug. 20, 2022, when it collided with the dock, said TSB investigator Étienne Séguin-Bertrand.
At the time, he said, the ferry was running behind schedule, with roughly 910 passengers and six crew members on board.
Séguin-Bertrand said the investigation revealed the ferry was docking at a speed of five knots rather than three knots, which is how fast it had docked on its previous eight trips that day.
For comparison, that means the ferry was coming in at a speed of just over 9 km/h instead of 5 km/h.
"The proportional increase is fairly significant," Séguin-Bertrand said.
The Sam McBride ferry has two propellers, one at the rear and one at the front of the boat. The TSB investigation found that while both were used on previous dockings, the crew was not able to engage the front propeller as it approached the terminal.
"Given the vessel speed and distance from the dock, the reverse thrust provided by the one propeller was not enough to stop the ferry," Séguin-Bertrand said.
"While we did not find evidence that there was a malfunction with the engine or the engine control system … we cannot say conclusively that there wasn't one."
At the time, Fox said the City of Toronto had no written procedures on safe docking and left it to the discretion of the vessel's master. She said the city has since introduced written procedures.
Age did not play a role in the collision, Séguin-Bertrand said, noting that old vessels can continue to operate safely if they are kept in good repair.
"We found no issues with the maintenance of the Sam McBride," he said.
When long-time journalist Cornelia Naylor picked up the first copy of her newly printed community newspaper this week, it wasn’t something she had ever expected to do.
The province's police watchdog is investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman in Toronto Sunday.
Toronto police say a collision involving several vehicles in the city's east-end left one driver in life-threatening condition Sunday.
A church service in Stratford, P.E.I., brought together Christmas traditions from across the globe on Sunday.
On an extremely cold day, many people would prefer to stay home, cozy up under a blanket, and put on the TV, radio, or a favourite podcast.
In an era of Ring doorbells and No Soliciting signs, breaking the evening silence of a suburban London street can sometimes feel like a radical act.
For years, oil tanker traffic has been prohibited off the waters of northern British Columbia in order to protect environmentally sensitive coastlines from disaster.
Cape Breton organizations that give out clothing to people in need are having trouble keeping their closets full.
Gabriel Plourde’s introduction to the music world came when he was nine, and a character in a Legend of Zelda game played a type of flute called an ocarina.
A TTC streetcar has derailed following an early morning crash with a car at a busy downtown Toronto intersection, said police.
This First Person article is the experience of Itrat Anwar, a newcomer from Bangladesh who now calls Steinbach, Man., his home. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see this FAQ. You can read more First Person articles here.
James Benesh was so interested in researching an online hockey draft, he ended up with one of the largest-known collections of hockey books and eventually being called a hockey historian.
A recent market and fundraiser showcasing Palestinian-owned businesses in Hamilton, including new start-ups by people from Gaza who now call the city home, was met with “incredible” support, organizers say.