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Bomb threat halts ferry sailings
Bomb threat halts ferry sailings
Tsawwassen shut down for much of Saturday afternoon and evening; no bomb found; partial service resumed around 9 p.m. Full service expected for Sunday.
Matthew Kruchak, Times Colonist and CanWest News Service
Published: Saturday, July 28, 2007
A bomb threat disrupted travel plans for thousands of B.C. Ferries passengers Saturday. After police decided the threat was "credible," service was halted in the late afternoon between Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay.
B.C. Ferries is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of those who made the threat.
After an extensive search failed to reveal a bomb, service resumed around 9 p.m. at Tsawwassen for people already at the terminal. There was also a 10:16 p.m. sailing from Swartz Bay to Tsawwassen.
Delta police received the bomb threat, which was directed toward the Tsawwassen terminal, said B.C. Ferries president David Hahn. The call was made from a Coquitlam Centre mall payphone from a male with a "Middle Eastern" accent, he said.
Scene from B.C. Ferries Tsawwassen terminal web cam at 7:50 p.m. Saturday.
B.C. Ferries
The Queen of New Westminster, destined for Duke Point, and the Queen of Vancouver, headed to Swartz Bay, were being loaded when the threat was received. Passengers were evacuated and a bomb-sniffing dog was sent to the scene, he said.
An unattended backpack on the deck of Queen of New Westminster was the focus of concern, but RCMP believed the incident was broader than just the bag on deck, Hahn said.
Both ships, including every vehicle on board, had to be searched before they could sail, he said. Each ship has the capacity to carry more than 385 vehicles and 1,300 passengers and crew.
Another 1,000 cars in the Tsawwassen compound had to be searched before they were allowed to leave the terminal, he said.
Ticket sales at Duke Point and Swartz Bay were stopped. Passengers with tickets were later allowed to board a ferry bound for Tsawwassen, he said.
"A lot of people have had their nights absolutely ruined, just ruined, Godawful long waits," Hahn said, estimating that between 10,000 and 20,000 people were affected by the threat.
"This type of nonsense has to stop, and if it means us going out and offering rewards to catch some of these guys, then that's what we'll do," he said.
B.C. Ferries closed all three affected terminals for the night and it wasn't determined when the regular schedule would resume, he said.
Only traffic already marshalled at Duke Point and Swartz Bay was initially allowed to leave for Tsawwassen.
Later Saturday, B.C. Ferries said passengers who were already at Swartz Bay (Victoria) and Duke Point (Nanaimo) terminals and had been sold tickets would be transported to Tsawwassen.
Hahn said an attempt would be made to re-route sailings through Horseshoe Bay "if it took all night."
Sailings between Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver and Departure Bay at Nanaimo continued roughly on schedule.
An additional sailing was scheduled out of Departure Bay for 11:30 p.m., and one out of Horseshoe Bay for 1:30 a.m. Sunday.
At Tsawwassen, vehicles were eventually allowed to leave the Queen of New Westminster and the Queen of Vancouver, which were docked there, after being searched by a team of three police dogs. That caused long lineups and short tempers.
Police efforts appeared to have focused on the Queen of New Westminster by about 6 p.m.
Noting it was the third such threat in the past six months as he announced the offering of a reward, Hahn called the bomb threat that snarled sailings and left thousands of summer travellers stranded "unacceptable."
"A lot of families are going to be very disappointed," he said. "It's going to be a long, tortuous night."
White Rock resident Chris Hall was on a ferry in from Saltspring when an announcement said there had been a "police incident."
The 54-year-old said her ferry docked on time in Tsawwassen at about 6 p.m. Passengers were then told that no one had been allowed down the causeway to the Delta terminal to pick up foot passengers.
Hall hauled her luggage down the roadway until she found her husband, Ron.
"We didn't have a choice. There was no one there to pick us up, so we had to walk out," she said. For some, it was a long way."
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/index.html
Tsawwassen shut down for much of Saturday afternoon and evening; no bomb found; partial service resumed around 9 p.m. Full service expected for Sunday.
Matthew Kruchak, Times Colonist and CanWest News Service
Published: Saturday, July 28, 2007
A bomb threat disrupted travel plans for thousands of B.C. Ferries passengers Saturday. After police decided the threat was "credible," service was halted in the late afternoon between Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay.
B.C. Ferries is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of those who made the threat.
After an extensive search failed to reveal a bomb, service resumed around 9 p.m. at Tsawwassen for people already at the terminal. There was also a 10:16 p.m. sailing from Swartz Bay to Tsawwassen.
Delta police received the bomb threat, which was directed toward the Tsawwassen terminal, said B.C. Ferries president David Hahn. The call was made from a Coquitlam Centre mall payphone from a male with a "Middle Eastern" accent, he said.
Scene from B.C. Ferries Tsawwassen terminal web cam at 7:50 p.m. Saturday.
B.C. Ferries
The Queen of New Westminster, destined for Duke Point, and the Queen of Vancouver, headed to Swartz Bay, were being loaded when the threat was received. Passengers were evacuated and a bomb-sniffing dog was sent to the scene, he said.
An unattended backpack on the deck of Queen of New Westminster was the focus of concern, but RCMP believed the incident was broader than just the bag on deck, Hahn said.
Both ships, including every vehicle on board, had to be searched before they could sail, he said. Each ship has the capacity to carry more than 385 vehicles and 1,300 passengers and crew.
Another 1,000 cars in the Tsawwassen compound had to be searched before they were allowed to leave the terminal, he said.
Ticket sales at Duke Point and Swartz Bay were stopped. Passengers with tickets were later allowed to board a ferry bound for Tsawwassen, he said.
"A lot of people have had their nights absolutely ruined, just ruined, Godawful long waits," Hahn said, estimating that between 10,000 and 20,000 people were affected by the threat.
"This type of nonsense has to stop, and if it means us going out and offering rewards to catch some of these guys, then that's what we'll do," he said.
B.C. Ferries closed all three affected terminals for the night and it wasn't determined when the regular schedule would resume, he said.
Only traffic already marshalled at Duke Point and Swartz Bay was initially allowed to leave for Tsawwassen.
Later Saturday, B.C. Ferries said passengers who were already at Swartz Bay (Victoria) and Duke Point (Nanaimo) terminals and had been sold tickets would be transported to Tsawwassen.
Hahn said an attempt would be made to re-route sailings through Horseshoe Bay "if it took all night."
Sailings between Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver and Departure Bay at Nanaimo continued roughly on schedule.
An additional sailing was scheduled out of Departure Bay for 11:30 p.m., and one out of Horseshoe Bay for 1:30 a.m. Sunday.
At Tsawwassen, vehicles were eventually allowed to leave the Queen of New Westminster and the Queen of Vancouver, which were docked there, after being searched by a team of three police dogs. That caused long lineups and short tempers.
Police efforts appeared to have focused on the Queen of New Westminster by about 6 p.m.
Noting it was the third such threat in the past six months as he announced the offering of a reward, Hahn called the bomb threat that snarled sailings and left thousands of summer travellers stranded "unacceptable."
"A lot of families are going to be very disappointed," he said. "It's going to be a long, tortuous night."
White Rock resident Chris Hall was on a ferry in from Saltspring when an announcement said there had been a "police incident."
The 54-year-old said her ferry docked on time in Tsawwassen at about 6 p.m. Passengers were then told that no one had been allowed down the causeway to the Delta terminal to pick up foot passengers.
Hall hauled her luggage down the roadway until she found her husband, Ron.
"We didn't have a choice. There was no one there to pick us up, so we had to walk out," she said. For some, it was a long way."
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/index.html
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