A dedication event for the Halfmoon Bay Coast Guard Auxiliary on June 27 to celebrate the service of a new boat in the Sechelt Inlet went from laughs to no laughing matter when the party was disrupted by the vessel's first call to action.
The Lewis-McPhee is the newest fast response rescue vessel for the auxiliary. During the dedication speech, station leader John Wisemen explained how the new boat, moored in the Inlet, would enable crews to answer calls without having to make the trip from Halfmoon Bay and through the Skookumchuck rapids.
After crew members demonstrated the boat's features and abilities, event attendees, including local government representatives, were invited out for a quick ride. Soon after, though, crew pagers started buzzing.
A concerned citizen in Tuwanek called in to report a tug with a log boom, its engine running, but apparently no one aboard. The Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre (JRCC) then contacted crew members, who, after dropping the Lewis-McPhee's passengers back at the dock, went out to investigate.
After an extensive search around the Tuwanek area, nothing was found until crews reached the Carlson Point area where they saw a dozer-boat, also known as a sidewinder, by a log boom. The crew, made up of coxswain Mark Coombs and auxiliary members Mark Zuidema and Sarah Park, found no one aboard and proceeded to shut down the engines then secured the vessel to the log boom.
The crew did a further search of the area, including land, but failed to find anyone affiliated to the boat. The crew was then directed by the JRCC to head back to base while the matter was turned over to Sunshine Coast RCMP.
