Remote BC Ferries route near Bella Coola still down after crew got COVID-19
Posted January 1, 2022 8:16 pm.
Last Updated January 1, 2022 8:19 pm.
Sailings for the Northern Sea Wolf, which connects remote communities near Bella Coola, has been out of service for over a week.
The route was canceled on Christmas Eve after at least one case of COVID-19 was identified among crew members.
Eric McNeely with the BC Ferry and Marine Workers Union says because the route is so remote, it was important to limit transmission as much possible. Shutting it all down was likely the safest bet once they knew there were cases on board, he adds.
“Remote communities that have a less robust healthcare system combined with a remote or Indigenous population — that does increase the risk factor for everyone, and that’s part of what both BC Ferries and the union have been striving towards, is ensuring that the crews, the passengers, and the communities that are served are as safe as possible,” he said.
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Although this route is not as busy as many southern routes, it does serve an important role by linking Indigenous communities, many of which are remote and not accessible by road.
These routes tend to be longer, with crews working in close quarters. However, McNeely says all crew members are fully vaccinated.
If all goes according to plan, the Northern Sea Wolf is set to be back up and running on Sunday.
The cancellation was announced after as BC Ferries called off four sailings during peak hours between Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay due to staffing levels.
McNeely says those disruptions make sense because marine worker positions are so niche and hard to fill.
“In some key roles — you know, captains, chief office, chief engineers, first engineers — there’s a real shortage of those skilled mariners, so much so that if one or two or three maybe in Tsawassen became ill with COVID at one time, there would likely be some service interruptions,” he said.
