In the wake of a Transportation Safety Board report that found navigational errors and poor communication contributed to the crash of a marine search-and-rescue vessel two years ago, a pair of lawsuits have been filed by two crew members.
Michael Walsh and Stephanie Govier, both new to the crew, having only trained for a combined 15 hours, have filed suit against Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue and fellow crew members Chris Danychuk and Stephen Whitworth, who were operating the Spirit of Sooke when it crashed Feb. 7, 2019, at Christie Point.
The suits, filed Friday in Victoria, claim the grounding was due to the negligence, recklessness and errors of the defendants, specifically noting they failed to maintain an adequate lookout and were navigating in poor visibility and darkness they knew or ought to have known would be dangerous.
The claims have not been proven in court.
The Transportation Safety Board report, released last month, concluded the grounding of the rigid-hull inflatable jet boat was the result of misinterpretation of navigational information and communication failures during a training exercise.
When it was released, Bill Riggs, chief executive of Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue, said the report was balanced and the organization agreed with its conclusions.
Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue members are all volunteers. The organization is independent but operates under the guidance of the Canadian Coast Guard and the Department of National Defence.
The report said the Spirit of Sooke vessel ran into shoreline rocks on Christie Point at about 27 knots or 50 kilometres per hour, throwing the crew members around the cabin in a violent manner and causing serious injuries.
The report noted the crew suffered head, neck and leg injuries, in part because they did not wear four-point harnesses and helmets on the vessel.
According to the lawsuits, Walsh suffered soft tissue injuries and a fracture of the foot, while Govier suffered soft tissue injuries and a fractured hip.
Both are seeking damages for loss of income, pain and suffering, psychological injuries, loss of ability to maintain a home and future health-care needs.
The defendants have three weeks to respond to the lawsuit.
