When Christine Younan worked in Tofino, Leviathan II was the go-to boat for tourists who had physical challenges or were uneasy on the water.
Before moving to Victoria, Younan lived in Tofino for a decade.
She worked at the Wickaninnish Inn on Chesterman Beach and at Ocean Outfitters on Main Street. If people were not able to go out in an inflatable Zodiac or power boat — pregnant women, people in wheelchairs or with bad backs, for example — a tour company or concierge could recommend Leviathan II, she said.
It’s for that reason that the boat’s sinking has sent a collective shockwave through the community and industry, said Younan, who now works in human resources for the Times Colonist. “If people were scared, that was the boat you put seniors on, and people with babies — it’s slow.”
Younan, who lived on a houseboat at Tofino, has experience on the water and owned a boat. She said she’s been at the spot where Leviathan II capsized and called it “treacherous,” but it was an area the boat could handle.
