Coast guard presence 'vital to the safety of Manitobans,' Lifesaving Society says
Union representing coast guard workers says stations closing on Lake Winnipeg, Red River, Lake of the Woods
Manitoba's largest lake will be far riskier for boaters with no coast guard patrolling its waters, the Lifesaving Society says.
"The leading cause of drowning death in Manitoba is boating incidents, so these services are vital to the safety of Manitobans," said Kevin Tordiffe, operations manager of the Lifesaving Society's Manitoba branch.
The union that represents coast guard employees raised safety concerns Thursday after it said workers learned the federal government will close stations on Lake Winnipeg in Gimli, the Red River in Selkirk and Lake of the Woods in Kenora, Ont.
Closing the stations would mean an end to the navigational and search and rescue services the coast guard has provided on the lakes and river.
A spokesperson with Department of Fisheries and Oceans said the stations are under review.
"As the coast guard invests in strengthening the commercial shipping system, it will reduce the patchwork of its services that currently exists on inland lakes but continue to provide these services on the coasts, the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway," the spokesperson said in a statement.
The news came during national safe boating week last week, when the main message was how many people die or are injured every year in boating accidents, Tordiffe said.
"It's like looking at the roads and taking away all of the street signs," he said of the coast guard stations closing. "You can imagine the devastation that would follow."
There are four staff members at the Gimli station, the DFO spokesperson said, while two crew members work out of Kenora. The DFO said it will help find new job placements for any coast guard employees affected by the changes.
RCMP to fill in
Gimli Mayor Randy Woroniuk said he was upset to learn this week that monitoring Lake Winnipeg will be up to RCMP after the summer.
"I don't feel good about it at all because I know the RCMP don't have the capacity or the experience to do it," he said.
"Unless the RCMP are going to bring a whole bunch of members in that are going to be devoted to Lake Winnipeg, I don't see how this is going to work. I mean, whoever thought this up sure didn't do a lot of future planning."
As the head municipal leader of this community, nobody has talked to me. I've heard all of this third hand.- Randy Woroniuk
CBC News has requested information from the RCMP but has yet to receive a response.
Woroniuk said he has not been contacted by anyone from the federal government about the changes and he feels left in the dark.
"As the head municipal leader of this community, nobody has talked to me. I've heard all of this third hand," he said.
"For something that is that important for this community, a courtesy call, or just to involve me and my council in discussions, should've been warranted."
'We could see more boat strikes'
Tordiffe said reducing staff who help boaters with tips on how to navigate around reefs and through shallow or otherwise hazardous waters will also directly hurt search and rescue capabilities on Lake Winnipeg.
"They're very useful and well-trained," he said. "We could see more boat strikes occurring.
"In and out of harbours, you're looking at the potential for boat to boat collisions occurring, or running aground or striking underwater objects like near Grand Beach, and all of those are incidents that contribute to drowning fatalities."
Managing ships on inland lakes and rivers is a responsibility DFO said the coast guard shares with provinces and communities across Canada.
"The coast guard will work closely with Indigenous peoples, local communities, marinas and boating associations who may wish to maintain local aids to navigation systems themselves," the spokesperson said.
It remains unclear who will take over water monitoring duties in all three locations. Tordiffe said the federal government has the option of contracting private companies to provide the services.
"But a private contract focusing solely on navigation isn't going to have spill over capacity for search and rescue, much like the coast guard does today," he said.
"We would like to see the experts in the field, those being the coast guard men and women that provide these services, retain the functionality to ensure that it's done at the highest [level]."
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With files from Leif Larsen and Marjorie Dowhos