VANCOUVER—Ferry crews on Canada's west coast who work under the influence of marijuana endanger the lives of passengers, safety officials said on Wednesday, in response to allegations of cannabis smoking on board one of the ships.
The Transportation Safety Board issued a warning note to BC Ferries Corp after the board said it had learned that that several crew members of the ferry Queen of the North, which sank last year after running into island, "regularly smoked cannabis between shifts, both on board and off the vessel."
The federal agency said it heard the allegations of marijuana use while investigating the sinking, but said there was no evidence that the bridge crew of the Queen of the North was under the influence of cannabis at the time of the accident on March 22, 2006.
The board, which has not yet released its report on the cause of the sinking, which killed two people, did not say from whom it heard the allegations of marijuana use, but its investigation has included interviews with all crew members.
"Ferry crews whose performance is impaired by cannabis are a clear risk to the traveling public," chairwoman Wendy Tadros said in a statement.
The board said it wanted BC Ferries, the British Columbia government-owned ferry service, to find out the extent of marijuana use on other ships in its fleet, and to review its policies on drugs and alcohol use. BC Ferries has not commented on the board's report.
The safety board said it would be monitoring the ferry service's actions on drug use, but did not say it planned any disciplinary action against either the company or crew members who might have used marijuana.
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