Students and crew aboard a marine school bus have been safely rescued after an engine fire on the vessel used to ferry children to school in B.C.’s southern Gulf Islands.
A spokesman with the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Victoria says crew members on board the vessel were able to put out the fire Thursday morning.
There were 33 people on board and all, except one crew member, were transferred to another vessel, the spokesman said. The crew member remained on board to help tow the vessel to nearby Sidney for repairs.
Jesse Guy, the secretary-treasurer of School District 64, said the students were in Grades 6 to 12 and were being transported to elementary, middle and high schools on Salt Spring and Pender islands when the fire occurred.
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School staff met the students as they arrived for school on another vessel and counsellors were available to anybody who needed assistance, she said in an interview.
Guy said the company had a backup vessel ready to transport the students back to their communities at the end of the school day.
“All students and boat crew are safe,” Guy said. `’We share the concerns of family and community.”
She said the contract holder for the water taxi service assured the district that all safety procedures were followed.
Several vessels in the area immediately responded to the incident, including a fast-response rescue boat launched by BC Ferries’ Coastal Renaissance, but that was called off before it reached the scene, the rescue centre spokesman said.