Ferry sinking disrupts Inside Passage route that's vital to locals, popular with tourists

British Columbia ferries are the lifeblood of its rugged coast, serving tiny islands and big cities. When one of them has an accident or mechanical failure, it can disrupt thousands of travelers and sends ripples of concern through the province. So Wednesday's dramatic sinking of the Queen of the North ferry is sending shock waves through B.C., and is disrupting travel along a northern route that carries local residents and cargo and is popular with tourists in summer. The Queen of the North, a 410-foot ferry, served the Inside Passage route between Port Hardy on northern Vancouver Island and Prince Rupert near the border with Alaska. In between, it called at isolated ports such as Bella Bella; it also had been temporarily serving the remote Queen Charlotte Islands.

The ferry sank shortly before 1 a.m. Wednesday about 85 miles south of Prince Rupert, going down near the small Gil Island amid the Inside Passage's maze of islands and waterways. It's believed to have struck a rock; an oil slick was all that remained visible of the 410-foot ship this afternoon.

In summer, the Queen of the North usually is filled to capacity with 700 passengers and crew since it offers a popular daylight cruise along the Inside Passage. The 15-hour summertime sailing between Port Hardy and Prince Rupert is an easy and economical way to see the wild, scenic B.C. coast, far cheaper and quicker than a Alaska-bound cruise ship from Seattle or Vancouver, B.C. which sail a similar route. For years, the summer Inside Passage sailings have drawn tourists from across North America and overseas.

Information

B.C. Ferries For details on B.C. Ferries, the sinking and service changes, go to www.bcferries.com

Fortunately, the ferry was much emptier Wednesday on its off-season overnight run south from Prince Rupert. It was carrying only 101 passengers and crew, they were able to get into lifeboats and were rescued by a Canadian coast guard vessel and by fishermen from the remote 600-population village of Hartley Bay (reached only by boat or float-plane). Two of the passengers were unaccounted for, but they are believed to have made their own way from the Hartley Bay rescue center back to Prince Rupert. So far, only minor injuries have been reported.

Service has been suspended on the Inside Passage route and also on sailings between Prince Rupert and the Queen Charlotte Islands; the Queen of the North was temporarily also serving that route since its regular ferry is being refitted.

B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell and B.C. Ferries President David Hahn were headed to Prince Rupert to meet the ferry passengers and crew this afternoon; he told Canadian media it was unclear how ferry service would be rearranged. The Inside Passage daytime cruise aboard the Queen of the North had been due to start in mid May and continue through September.

The Queen of the North was one of B.C. Ferries' older ships among its 35 vessels, which serve 47 ports from the Gulf Islands to tiny mainland villages along the Inside Passage where there's no road for 100 miles. In southern British Columbia, big ferries shuttle almost hourly from two Vancouver-area ports to Vancouver Island. There have been previous accidents on B.C. Ferries, but most involved collisions, not sinkings. Last June, a ferry lost power and slammed into a dock at the Horseshoe Bay terminal in West Vancouver; there was damage, but no injuries. Six years ago, a ferry hit a power boat near the Swartz Bay ferry dock near Victoria; two people aboard the motorboat died.

Kristin Jackson: kjackson@seattletimes.com