The Canadian Coast Guard's new radio communications system is having more problems, this time affecting the B.C. coast.
In two recent notices to mariners, the Coast Guard advises that systems that look out for distress calls are either out of service or operating sporadically.
Canadian Autoworkers Union regional director Allan Hughes says the outage puts everything from fishing trawlers to cruise ships at risk: "From north of Port Hardy, the whole Queen Charlotte sound, and the central coast, so Namu, Bella Bella, Bella Coola, and also the Douglas Channel where they are anticipating to put the Northern Gateway project through, that channel is also operating intermittently."
Hughes says if this happened after the federal government closed three of B.C.’s five marine communication centres, then half of the B.C. coast would be in the dark.