North Vancouver residents and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) members are calling for more marine enforcement, following a recent boating tragedy.
On June 7, a speedboat collided with a recreational tube near Whey-ah-Wichen/Cates Park, killing 10-year-old Lionel Hall and critically injuring his friend Onur Yucel.
With the amount of marine traffic in the area, Tsleil-Waututh Elected Chief Jen Thomas said it was an accident waiting to happen.
“It could have been easily prevented if there were authorities out on the water,” she said.
“There’s a handful of boats that probably do the speed limit, and then there’s some that don’t even think about where they are or who’s around them,” Thomas said.
With her Nation’s annual canoe race festival approaching, they have many teams out practising on the busy waterway.
“We have our members out on the water every single day,” Thomas said. “Even if it’s just a little bit rough out there it’s hard to see them from a distance.”
In the past, there have been close calls between power boaters and canoe racers, she added.
Thomas said the solution is more enforcement. “Enforcement especially of that [type of] boat that hit the boys,” she said, referring to the cigarette, or “go-fast” boat involved in the crash.
“We can hear it in our community when it goes by,” she said.
Marco Reichgeld is a Deep Cove resident whose home looks out over the water near Cates Park.
He’s seen cigarette boats before, he said.
“Just flying up and down the arm, even through the five-knot area, which is from the south end of Boulder Island to past Deep Cove,” Reichgeld said.
Tons of boats speed through there, but Reichgeld said he sees little enforcement from authorities.
“They’ve got to start ticketing these boaters who are going faster than five knots in that area. Then word gets around that they’re watching,” he said.
Port authority discussing what improvements can be made, spokesperson says
Waterways near crash site are monitored by a number of authorities, including North Vancouver RCMP, Vancouver Fraser Port Authority and Canadian Coast Guard.
North Van RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Mansoor Sahak released a statement on Thursday, calling for witnesses with “intimate knowledge” of the fatal boating crash to come forward.
When asked how police monitor the water near Cates Park, Sahak said the detachment has one boat with a number of members trained to use it, but that it is not deployed full time.
North Van RCMP were also asked how many tickets have been issued to boaters over the past two years.
“The requested statistics are not readily available or specifically tracked,” Sahak said. “Additionally, the RCMP is not the only agency authorized to issue boating related tickets within the province, so any available data would not provide a complete or accurate reflection of enforcement activity.”
The North Van detachment was also asked if there’s co-ordination between the various authorities to enforce marine traffic.
“There’s so many agencies involved, it’s not for me to give that answer,” Sahak said.
Sahak clarified that North Van RCMP has jurisdiction over the Cates Park area, but said the port authority plays “a bigger role.”
Vancouver Fraser Port Authority spokesperson Arpen Rana said her agency is “deeply saddened” by the tragic incident.
“Right now, our focus is on supporting police who are leading an investigation into the incident. We are also working with the District of North Vancouver and other partners to discuss what improvements can be made in response,” she said.
“The Cates Park area falls within our navigational jurisdiction, meaning we oversee practices and procedures to support safe recreational and commercial vessel movements in the area similar to other Port of Vancouver waterways,” Arpen said.
The port authority works closely with police to support safety on the waterways, she said, adding that RCMP is best suited to answer questions on enforcement of boating laws and regulations.
The port authority operates a fleet of five harbour patrol vessels, with two to three typically active on the waterways on any given day, Arpen said.
The harbour patrol team educates many recreational marine users in Burrard Inlet and the Fraser Valley on safety and rules, she said.
“In 2024 alone, the team proactively engaged boaters and paddlers on more than 1,100 vessels to provide guidance and share critical safety information,” Arpen said.
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