Wednesday emergency response for Canadian Coast Guard, called to lend assistance to mayday call from RCMP Mariners

Members of the Prince Rupert Marine Unit were able
to safely bring their vessel to shore on Kennedy Island
after mechanical issues during the height of an 
extreme weather event on Wednesday

An RCMP patrol vessel out of Prince Rupert experienced mechanical difficulties at the height of Wednesday's extreme weather event, requiring a response from the Canadian Coast Guard to lend assistance during high winds and heavy seas.

During the course of the Wednesday afternoon incident the Mounties were able to navigate the challenging conditions to bring the vessel to shore on one of the southern islands offshore of the approach  to Prince Rupert.

In an information update for the incident, the Prince Rupert RCMP note:

On December 23 at approximately 1:00 PM a Prince Rupert RCMP vessel was travelling near Kennedy Island (approximately 24km's from Prince Rupert) where it was eventually beached due to it taking on water. 

The Coast Guard was called in to help and arrived within the hour to assist and safely extract the police officer's. The patrol vessel a long with the police officer's were taken back to Prince Rupert. 

It was reported that winds were 55km/h with a 4 foot chop.

Prince Rupert RCMP officials made note of the dangers that were faced by their members and of the assistance of their partners in Emergency Response on the North Coast.

"This was a dangerous situation that resulted in the best case outcome given the circumstances the officers were faced with. Police work is inherently risky, and this is an example of the split second decisions police officers are faced with on a daily basis." -- Cpl. Devon Gerrits of the Prince Rupert RCMP

"The Prince Rupert RCMP want to thank the Coast Guard for their fast and professional response to this hazardous situation,"  -- Sgt. Todd Wilson, Prince Rupert acting Detachment Commander.

You can review the RCMP's information release here.

Further notes on the work of Emergency Responders on the North Coast can be explored from our archive page here.