I recall one occasion on the River Thames when my failure to weigh anchor resulted in our dutch barge making embarassingly slow progress to the boatyard where I was seeking to refuel. Fortunately, I was the only one aboard at the time and it proved only to brighten the morning of the dockhand at the boatyard as he pointed out to me that there was a long chain emerging from the anchor locker and disappearing into the water below the bow.
This morning, the captain of the BC Ferry Spirit of British Columbia suffered a somewhat more public humiliation. The 7 a.m. sailing from Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay came to a juddering halt shortly after negotiating Active Pass when its bow anchor unexpectedly plunged to the ocean floor.
One truck driver described how he was woken from his sleep by a loud banging sound and the ship juddering and swaying from side to side. Another witness had earler described how the vessel had "done a doughnut" before coming to a halt. Not sure what "doing a doughnut" could mean, but it sounds impressive!
Deborah Marshall, spokeswoman for B.C. Ferries, confirmed that the vessel's anchor had inadvertently released after the ferry cleared Georgina Point on Mayne Island. "The crew did not deploy the anchor," she said. At 9:20 a.m., after an 80-minute stop, the ship was underway again.
"There is nothing mechanically wrong with the Spirit of B.C.," Marshall said. So what did cause the anchor to drop? A disgruntled passenger wanting to get home to Mayne Island? Maybe one day we shall be told.
Until then, maybe we should just remember that the Spirit of British Columbia was supposed to have been taken out of service 2 weeks ago for annual maintenance and recertification. Because of the fire aboard her sister ship Spirit of Vancouver Island, BC Ferries decided to delay the annual maintenance on Spirit of BC.
There may be no connection of course, but it does make you wonder.....
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