Montreal: Canada’s Transportation Safety Board (TSB) confirmed on Tuesday that it is looking into the circumstances surrounding a double tugboat sinking on the St. Lawrence River.
The tugboats both sank on Monday in close proximity and five hours apart under conditions that included choppy water and heavy currents at a point in the river near to Cornwall, Ontario.
In the first instance the Lac Manitoba, capsized at approximately 4:00 p.m. after running into trouble when trying to manoeuvre a large barge carrying a crane.
In the second case the LCM 131 ran into difficulties when trying to secure a barge to a dock.
Both boats were in the area to assist in the demolition of the Seaway International Bridge, which closed in January 2014 and is slated to be demolished by 2016.
The crews from both vessels managed to evacuate, although one person from the Lac Manitoba was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The TSB’s probe will look at the history of vessels, the crew complement, their qualifications and certifications and the organizations that operate the tugboats.
