Improved Federal SAR Response Time Needed

February 22, 2010

FFAW/CAW President Earle McCurdy said the strong and decisive action by Inquiry Commissioner Robert Wells on search and rescue response times in the offshore oil industry highlight once again the inadequacy of the government of Canada’s search and rescue services.

Mr. McCurdy praised Commissioner Wells’ recommendation that response times for rescue helicopters in the offshore oil industry be reduced from the current one hour to 15-20 minutes to get a chopper in the air.

He called on the federal government to adopt the same response time for its search and rescue service.

The current SAR response standard is half an hour from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays, increasing to two hours response time outside regular hours.
 
“Every minute counts during an emergency at sea, Mr. McCurdy said. “The North Atlantic is a harsh environment, and our members who work in that environment deserve emergency response times that are second to none. Surely the lives of fish harvesters worth no less than those of offshore oil workers.”

He noted that since the offshore oil industry began off Newfoundland, more fish harvesters have lost their lives at sea than the combined total of the Ocean Ranger disaster in 1982 and the Cougar helicopter tragedy in 2009. 

“I fully support Commissioner Wells’ forceful recommendation, and the efforts by offshore oil workers, their union and their families to improve response times. These are matters of life and death. Offshore oil workers deserve the best service technology can provide. Fish harvesters deserve no less.”

Mr. McCurdy noted that St. John’s East MP Jack Harris brought to the Wells Inquiry Commission’s attention that response times in many countries, including Australia, Ireland and the United States, are considerably shorter than in Canada.

“The Ocean Ranger and the Cougar tragedies had a major impact because so many people died in single events. Because the fatal accidents in the fishery tend to involve one or two or three fatalities at a time doesn’t make them any less heart-breaking to the families,” Mr. McCurdy said.

“The cumulative numbers of fishing industry fatalities make it clear that we need better response times. Commissioner Wells has set the standard. We look to our federal government to match it.”