Category Archives: Coast Guard

Oops! What Happened to the Water?

Adult Memories, British Columbia, Coast Guard, Communication, Environment, Fisheries and Oceans, Fishing, Lighthouses, On The Job, Radio, Wildlife, , , , , , , , ,

A few days ago I posted an article on the lightkeepers being the eyes and ears of the BC coast. While writing it an incident was brought to my mind of my early days in 1977 on McInnes Island. We arrived on McInnes in August 1977 so this had to have happened in Spring 1978.

Every year on the British Columbia coast the herring start their spawn in early spring. We, being curious lighthouse keepers are always interested in the goings on in the sea, from the arrival of the salmon to the arrival of winter storms. We always had our eyes out for something happening.

Well, one of the things we had been warned about was pollution. One morning I awoke and the ocean around the lighthouse as far away as Price Island, two kilometers away, was a milky white as though lime had been dumped in the ocean. Nowhere could I see blue sea except distantly in front of the lighthouse.

white water – photo Flickr by poecile05

I was astounded! What had happened? I had no idea. Last night everything was normal; today, total chaos!

I phoned Coast Guard Radio in Bull Harbour and reported this accident, not knowing what it was or how to describe it. The operator said he would pass it on to the Coast Guard. 

That was it? The ocean was polluted! I could not see a foot into the water! That was all they were going to do? Continue reading Oops! What Happened to the Water? →

$20 Fine Silver Coin – 50th Anniversary of the Canadian Coast Guard – Mintage: 7500 (2012)

Adult Memories, Advertisement, Canada, Coast Guard, Coins, Fisheries and Oceans, History, Lighthouses, , , ,

CCG Fine Silver coin / Pièce d’argent fin de la GCC 

The Royal Canadian Mint is paying tribute to the thousands of courageous men and women who have served, and who continue to serve Canada both at sea and on shore, by issuing a 99.99 per cent fine silver coin featuring our flagship icebreaker CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent hard at work in the frozen waters of the Canadian Arctic.Here we see the launch event of the silver coin in Sarnia, Ontario  Facebook page.

 
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The Royal Canadian Mint have launched their newest coin, which pays tribute to the Coast Guard on the 50th anniversary of its formation. The commemorative coin honors all former and current members of the Canadian Coast Guard for their commitment to keeping Canadian waterways safe, often while risking their own lives to do so.

Canada, the world’s second largest country in land mass – has the world’s largest coast line at more than 125,570 miles or 202,080-kilometres. The Canadian Coast Guard was founded on the 26th January 1962 and is a special operating agency within the department of Fisheries and oceans. Today’s Coast Guard employs more than 4,500 personnel with 114 vessels and 22 helicopters under its command. Coin Update Continue reading $20 Fine Silver Coin – 50th Anniversary of the Canadian Coast Guard – Mintage: 7500 (2012) →

Government Contracts to Paint Lighthouses

Anti-Automation, Automation, Canada, Coast Guard, Environment, Equipment, Fisheries and Oceans, Government, History, Information, Lighthouses, News, Real Estate, Reprint, Weather, , , , , , , ,

The title is a tiny bit misleading. The government is not contracting to paint the lighthouse (is not doing the job themselves using government personnel as in the olden days) but is contracting out to private persons to do the work previously done by government workers.

An interesting article on the Peggys1 Cove lighthouse in Nova Scotia says:

 

Peggys Cove lighthouse crumbling
Province, feds negotiate while structure suffers

 

However, dealing with the problem is not as straightforward as sending someone the tab. Peggys Cove is owned by the federal government, which is currently getting out of the lighthouse business. The Nova Scotia government is in negotiations to take over the site, but no date has been set for completion of the talks.

So who is going to paint Peggys Cove, and many other abandoned lighthouses?

One of the commenter’s on the above site made the following reply:

Here’s the link for all those interested in bidding. Go create an account on Merx and bid away your $400.00 to paint it.

http://www.merx.com/English/nonmember.asp?WCE=Show&TAB=1&State=1&hcode=DSmmOnl5zU6FVjU16CWLSQ%3D%3D

Now that Merx site is very interesting. It shows Canadian Public Tenders for jobs the Canadian Government puts out for bids. I searched but could not finds anything lighthouse-related, but maybe you will have better luck. Let me know if you find anything.

There are some interesting jobs available, but one thing comes to mind. What has happened to the Public Works Department of the Canadian Government? They used to do all the painting and construction projects..Does Public Works no longer exist?

Aha! I found it! It is now called Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC). They pay me my pension, but do they do anything else? Check out PWGSC website and see if you can find out.

Not much there about painting old lighthouses. Lots on procurement and disposal though. So I guess they just buy stuff and dispose of it when no longer needed. Is any reader working for PWGSC that can better fill us in on the workings of PWGSC?

So, unless the community is going to do the work and pay for the job itself, I guess Canadian lighthouse are headed for a dim future (pun intended).

FOOTNOTE:
1 Peggys Cove (2009 population: approx. 46), also known as Peggy’s Cove from 1961 to 1976, is a small rural community located on the eastern shore of St. Margarets Bay in Nova Scotia’s Halifax Regional Municipality.- Wikipedia

Drowning at Lawyer Island c. 1904

Adult Memories, Coast Guard, Groceries & Mail, History, In Memorium, Keepers, Lighthouses, Old Website, On The Job, Rowboat, Travel, Women, , , , , ,

In the Lighthouses of British Columbia guestbook I came across an entry by an “M. W. Harding”. He stated that his grandfather had been the first lighthouse keeper on Lawyer Island, near Prince Rupert, BC, and had accidentally drowned. I contacted Mr. Harding and got more information from him about his grandfather’s death. – retlkpr

In the words of – Ned Harding (Grandson of Thomas Harvey who was Senior Keeper at Lawyer Island 1921 – c.1905)

Lawyer Island c. 1900s - photo CCG, Prince Rupert.

He said: “I have some information regarding the Lawyer Island Lighthouse. This information was given to me by my mother who was the daughter of the original keeper. The keeper’s name was Thomas Harvey who took care of the light starting approximately 1901. He was married to my grandmother in 1898 and my mother was born in Vancouver in 1899.”

“My mother and grandmother were also at Lawyer Island from about 1902. The grandmother’s name was Hannah G. Harvey, and my mother’s original name was Frances T. Harvey. The light was tended by this duo until 1904 when my grandfather was lost in the sea while rowing to Prince Rupert as was his practice from time to time.” Continue reading Drowning at Lawyer Island c. 1904 →

This is a real edible cake from Sweet Treats by Jen - http://sweetsbyjen.blogspot.com/

One year ago today I signed up with HostPapa, a Canadian website service provider, after having purchased my domain name, and learned how to use WordPress, lighthousememories.ca became known on the Internet. So today is the 1st anniversary of the website know as Lighthouse Memories.

Before that time, the site had been running for seven years as a self-hosted site on my son’s server in Canada. It was moderately successful, and I had many contacts, but with the help of HostPapa and Google things have boomed and we have the website as it is today.

Over the past year I have transferred over all the files from my old website, and reposted them on the new site. As well I have tried to keep up on things that lighthouse keepers feel responsible for – pollution, weather, oil spills, wildlife and fish protection, as well as manning the light. The Canadian lightkeeper keeps his eye on everything on the sea and in the sky while performing his job.

Since January 2012, the Canadian government under Prime Minister Steven Harper has been undermining the roles of the Coast Guard on all Canadian coasts, but especially on the British Columbia coast. Firing scientists and inspectors, reducing the number of staff manning MCTS centers and planning on closing SAR and MCTS stations, not to mention declaring most of the lighthouses surplus. Not much of a birthday present. 

I must say though, thanks for all the support, the nice comments and all the stories, documents and photos that have been submitted over the years.

Oh yes! Speaking of photos! Soon I will be starting photo pages for each of the BC lighthouses, and would love to see lots of submissions. I will post each station on a separate page and give credit to all who submit. Thanks.

 

Another Lighthouse Destroyed by the Sea! 1967

Adult Memories, British Columbia, Canada, Coast Guard, Communication, Construction, Equipment, Incidents, Information, Keepers, Light, Lighthouses, Medical Emergency, News, Old Website, On The Job, Storms, Weather, , , , , , , , , ,

 

Pine Island lighthouse after the storm

On February 18, 1967 at 00:30 hours, a giant wall of water slammed into Pine Island, destroying buildings and washing away equipment and personal possessions. [B&W photo left] The following article describes it well.
(If anyone knows the author, or or where this article came from, please let me know so I can give credit. It appeared with the photo on the left of the page and the page was numbered 13. Thanks.- JAC)

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Fury . . . and British Columbia

Pine Island, B.C. – The worst damage in the history of British Columbia’s coastal lighthouses was inflicted here ­recently when a 50 foot wall of water slammed into this tiny island during a raging storm. Continue reading Another Lighthouse Destroyed by the Sea! 1967 →

Reprint – DFO Shutting Down Coast Guard Radio Stations, but Prince Rupert’s Will Be Expanded

Anti-Automation, Automation, British Columbia, Canada, Coast Guard, Communication, Environment, Equipment, Fisheries and Oceans, Fishing, Foreign, Government, Incidents, Lighthouses, Medical Emergency, Operators, Radio, Reprint, Search & Rescue, Ships & Shipping, Shipwrecks, Travel, Tsunami, Weather, , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

I wrote an article on January 04, 2012 entitled MCTS To Lose Staff To Save Money. After that date, the department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO or F&O) have changed their plans. They are now closing whole stations instead of a removing a few men! The news article below is well written and explains what is planned for the BC coast. If all goes through we will have only two (2) MCTS stations on the whole BC coast, relying on mountaintop repeaters to reply to ships at sea.

I can also see soon that their plans will include again trying to de-staff the lighthouses. Pretty soon the whole BC coast will be bare of any support for boaters!

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By Alan S. Hale – The Northern View
Published: May 18, 2012 4:00 PM
Updated: May 18, 2012 4:59 PM

The Coast Guard communication monitoring station in Prince Rupert will be even more important to ensuring the safety of seafarers. The Prince Rupert station will be one of only two “modernized” coast guard stations in the entire province – the other one being in Sydney. Continue reading Reprint – DFO Shutting Down Coast Guard Radio Stations, but Prince Rupert’s Will Be Expanded →

A Trip by Helicopter up the West Coast to Carmanah Point 2006

Adult Memories, Anti-Automation, Beachcombing, British Columbia, Coast Guard, Communication, Construction, Equipment, Groceries & Mail, Helicopters, Keepers, Lighthouses, Maps, Old Website, On The Job, Operators, Photos, Radio, Transportation, Travel, Visitors, , , , , , , , , ,

 A trip by helicopter up the west coast of Vancouver island to Carmanah Point 
October 25, 2006 

Bell 212 at Carmanah Point - photo Mike Shepherd

To see what part of the west coast of Vancouver island is like from the air, check out Mike Shepherd’s article Coast Guard Bell 212 Helicopter Trip. 

There are some really nice shots of the Pacific Ocean and familiar lighthouses.

– Mike Shepherd is a Marine Communications and Traffic Services (MCTS) bofficer at Tofino MCTS, which is located on Amphitrite Point, near Ucluelet, British Columbia, Canada.

Illness at Sisters Island c. 1929

Adult Memories, Childhood Memories, Coast Guard, Equipment, History, In Memorium, Lighthouses, Medical Emergency, Old Website, On The Job, Women, , , , , , , ,

As told to me by – Allen Herbert Smithman (Grandson of Henry Herbert Smithman who was Senior Keeper at Sisters Island 1927 – 1929)

Sisters Island lighthouse c. 1929

Henry Herbert Smithman was a keeper of the lighthouse at Sisters Island (November 30, 1927 – February 27, 1929) until he became sick and was moved to a hospital in Victoria, B.C. where he died. I believe, although unconfirmed, that he died of rheumatic fever because my father, one of the four boys that were living at the light alone with their mother (my grandmother) Elizabeth Kate, contracted the same illness but was nursed back to health at home on the light.

My grandmother told me the story that when my grandfather died the “powers that be” would not allow her to stay on at the lighthouse as women were not strong enough to take care of a lighthouse. The cute part was that she was the one looking after the light for the past weeks as well as taking care of her four sons ranging in age from about three to ten. Continue reading Illness at Sisters Island c. 1929 →

The True Story of Egg Island November 2, 1948

British Columbia, Childhood Memories, Coast Guard, Communication, Construction, Equipment, Government, History, Incidents, Keepers, Lighthouses, Old Website, On The Job, Storms, Weather, , , , , ,
The author, Dennis Wilkins, Green Island 1947

There have been many reports, newspaper articles, books, etc. written about the disaster that occurred at Egg Island Lighthouse station November 2nd, 1948 – none of which tell the true story. A few of the newspaper reporters of that time interviewed my father, many more got their stories second, third and fourth hand. None of the authors of the books written since have ever interviewed or talked directly to my father, Robert Laurence Wilkins, my mother, Ada Marie Wilkins or myself, Dennis Edward Wilkins. I mention the names in full to finally get the characters of the story straight.

Many of the stories in print are, in themselves, very interesting and intriguing – lacking only in the fact that that is not what or how it all happened. The fault may not lie with the various authors; the Government of Canada did much to avoid the truth from being heard then and later. Now that both my mother and father are dead, and most of the other players in the story are long since past, I feel reasonably safe in documenting the story.
The purpose of this record is primarily for my family and friends, who have always shown a greater fascination for the story than myself (perhaps since I was there). Secondly, there may be the odd other person who has heard the story before and would appreciate knowing just what really happened that day.

To start the story, some background is required to set the scene. I will start just before the move to Egg Island early in 1948. Continue reading The True Story of Egg Island November 2, 1948 →