BC Ferries says Horseshoe Bay – Departure Bay sailings to resume after Wednesday mechanical issue

BC Ferries passengers were already warned to expect delays and nearly sold out sailings for the Easter long weekend. But Thursday morning, they also faced cancellations on the popular route between West Vancouver and Nanaimo.

The Queen of Oak Bay was been pulled from service after a mechanical issue left hundreds of passengers stranded at sea late Wednesday.

The ferry was on the Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay route when it experienced what BC Ferries calls a “hydraulic failure of the steering pump” in the Strait of Georgia. The crew was forced to call for a tow, which took hours. As a result, the 8 p.m. sailing didn’t dock until 1:30 a.m., about four hours later than scheduled.

The issue also forced cancellations Thursday morning. The 6:15 a.m. and 10:40 a.m. departures from Horseshoe Bay were cancelled. The 8:25 a.m. and 1 p.m. sailings from Departure Bay were also called off.

Sonya Hartwig was one of the passengers on the Queen of Oak Bay on the way home to Nanaimo when the boat stopped near Gabriola Island Wednesday night.

The Queen of Oak Bay is undergoing repairs after a mechanical issue late Wednesday night between Nanaimo and West Vancouver. (Credit: BC Ferries)

“Everything was fine, business as usual and then suddenly I felt the rumbling of the boat stop and I was wondering what was going on, but I thought nothing of it, and then they made an announcement saying they were having an issue with the steering mechanics of the boat,” she told CityNews early Thursday.

“After awhile there was another announcement that it was serious enough that we would have to wait for a tugboat and that could take multiple hours,” she said.

She says the energy on the boat shifted and “everyone was a bit stressed out about it…people were really tired, wanting to get home.”

She says some passengers took their frustrations out on ferry staff, but she says she personally felt they did the best they could, and appreciated the free hot chocolate passed out to passengers during the hours-long wait.

Passengers on the Queen of Oak Bay were given free hot drinks as they waited for the tug boats to arrive and tow the vessel to shore. April 13, 2022. (Courtesy: Sonya Hartwig/Twitter)

After docking, Hartwig had to then wait for a bus to take her home, and says she was not looking forward to getting up for work in a few hours.

“My shift starts at 9 a.m. in the morning, so it’s going to be a grumpy day, but I’m happy to have arrived safely,” she said, laughing.

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BC Ferries has warned that ongoing staffing issues are leading to some cancellations in recent months, and to be patient with staff this long weekend as it is expected to be among the busiest of the year.

Some sailings from the Horseshoe Bay terminal had already been cancelled for Thursday because of a delay in the return of the Queen of Surrey to service after an annual refit. BC Ferries it has shuffled its vessels around to resume service Thursday afternoon.

“What we are going to do is re-deploy the Queen of Coquitlam over to the Horseshoe Bay – Departure Bay route. That vessel will fill in for the Queen of Oak Bay’s sailings this afternoon. We are going to put the Queen of Surrey back into service this afternoon on the Langdale run,” Marshall said.

“Other than the cancellations we’ve had this morning, there should be no further impact on our service today.”

She says people travelling out of Horseshoe Bay Thursday afternoon should expect backups at the terminal.