According to HaiCo Enterprises, the incident began around 9PM Saturday, with the WestCoast Resorts barge breaking loose from its anchor buoy and drifting to an area west of the Village of Queen Charlotte over the course of several hours, one staff member was on board the barge as it began its transit, that staff member has since been removed as a safety precaution.
To this point it has not been determined how the barge came free of the anchorage, as the barge beached it suffered fractures in the hull and there are indications that a fuel line may have ruptured.
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| The WestCoast Resorts fishing barge has beached in an area west of Village of Queen Charlotte on Haida Gwaii |
An exclusion zone was put in place by the Coast Guard on Sunday and a specialized contractor who is certified in handling hazardous materials in confined spaces is expected onsite today.
The HaiCo update provides for three other items of note:
There is no current danger of the barge sinking as the barge is beached and the hull is compartmentalized.
No diesel has leaked and there is no impact to the marine environment at this time although there are concerns with changing tides.
Local resources are monitoring the situation and will handle any possible containment issues.
A number of response agencies are on site to examine the situation further and design the recovery plan ahead.
The most recent update from the Canadian Coast Guard related to the incident came Sunday afternoon with the Coast Guard advising that it was working with the owners and local contractors to develop a salvage plan for the vessel.
The full information release can be reviewed here.
Our original notes on the story, as well as some of the media coverage that followed the weekend incident can be found here.
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