At least five dead in Canada whale-watching boat tragedy

Officials urgently checking to see if there were any Brits on board

26 October 2015

Urgent checks are being carried out to establish whether any Brits were on board a Canadian whale-watching boat that sunk, killing at least five people.

The boat, carrying 27 passengers and operated by a local tour company, got into difficulty off the coast of British Columbia at about 4pm local time on Sunday afternoon.

A major search and rescue operation was launched, with the boat partly submerged eight nautical miles from Tofino, on Vancouver Island.

A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: "Following the incident in Tofino on October 25, we are urgently seeking information from the local authorities and stand ready to provide consular support to any British nationals involved."

Rescue: Canadian authorities have mounted a search for victims

Reuters

Lt Commander Desmond James of the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre said the military agency's search had concluded with five people dead, 21 rescued and one person missing.

It was a clear bright day when the 20-metre Leviathan II, operated by Jamie's Whaling Station, made a mayday call late on Sunday afternoon, local time, in the tourist community which is a popular destination for whale watchers on the country's west coast.

John Forde, who runs The Whale Centre, another whale-watching operation, said he did not know how the boat could have sunk.

"Over the course of a season and years we take out thousands and thousands of people on these trips in conditions similar today. I have no idea what the issue was or what actually happened," he said.

Additional reporting by the Press Association

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At least five dead in Canada whale-watching boat tragedy

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