On August 2, 1970 three people died when Russian freighter Sergey Yesenin collided with BC ferry the Queen of Victoria in Active Pass. The freighter’s steel bow sliced through the ferry almost cutting it in half.
From Vancouver Exposed: Searching for the City’s Hidden History
Active Pass:
One of the highlights of taking a BC Ferry from Vancouver to Victoria is Active Pass, that narrow channel of water that runs through the Gulf Islands. It’s particularly interesting when two ferries are travelling in different directions at the same time, forcing them to hug the shore. It’s also the riskiest part of the crossing for ferry captains.
It was a clear summer morning on August 2, 1970 when Captain James Pollock entered Active Pass in the Queen of Victoria. Although Pollock wouldn’t have been expecting to see a 14,700-ton Russian freighter, in those days it wasn’t unusual for deep sea freighters to take a short cut through Active Pass cutting off 14 kilometers from their trip.
Sergey Yesenin:
Captain Pollock made a radio call announcing their entry into the channel, but the ferry and the ship ran on different radio frequencies and no one answered him.
David Crabbe was the Canadian pilot aboard the Sergey Yesenin and it was his job to get the freighter safely to Vancouver. He was unaware that the Queen of Victoria was running late out of Tsawwassen and he took the freighter through the shorter route. Instead of taking a long turn, the freighter made a sharp entry which turned into a wide swing into mid-channel as she moved through the pass. The two vessels collided and slowly pinwheeled through the J-shaped channel.
Ray Williams was fishing in Active Pass that day and captured the impact and aftermath on his movie camera. He filmed the freighter’s steel bow slicing through the ferry’s portside, which was carrying over 500 passengers and crew, almost cutting it in half. Before it stopped it had knifed through two levels of outside deck and penetrated almost to the middle of the forward lounge in the passenger deck. The steel ceiling was crushed to the floor, and chairs, where passengers had been sitting were obliterated. Glass and magazines littered the floor. A broken pipe poured water on to the carpet.
Collision:
Edwin Watson saw the freighter coming and stood up and shouted for passengers to move to the far side of the lounge area. “When they just starred at him, he began physically shoving them out of the way,” says his son Scott. “He got a letter of appreciation from the BC Ferry Corporation.”
Eight people were injured. Ann Hammond, a 31-year-old school teacher from Victoria and her seven-month old baby Peter, as well as 17-year-old Sheila Mae Taylor from New Jersey were killed.
Phylis Everlie Songhurst wasn’t on the ferry that day, but the event is firmly seared into her memory. “This was three days before my 12th birthday,” she said. “I was in the Resthaven hospital having my appendix removed. Ann Hammond died in the bed next to me.”
The Russian freighter took most of the blame and paid BC Ferries $550,000 in damages, and 60% of all third-party claims.
The Queen of Victoria was repaired and put back into service. An upper deck was added in 1981 and she was part of the fleet until 2000 when BC Ferry’s sold her to a company based in the Dominican Republic.
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