Category Archives: British Columbia

Shiny New Guest Blogger, Bearing a Letter

January 21, 2012Boats, British Columbia, Information, Medical Emergency, Operators, Search & Rescue, UnionBC, British Columbia, Canada, CG, Coast Guard, lighthouse, litehouse, marine, marine traffic, MCTS, MCTSO, reduction, ships, staff, staff reduction, stations, traffic, vesselsretlkpr

Hi all. Our lovely blog master asked if I would make a guest post now and then, and, since the world as I appreciate it is where everyone listens to me, of course I said “yes!”

By way of introduction, I’ll post a letter that I sent to Hon. Mr. Keith Ashfield, Minister of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, on the topic of Marine Communications and Traffic Services cutbacks. This blog has already posted on this topic, but I thought I would add my voice.

I also sent a copy to my MP Jean Crowder. Ms Crowder responded promptly. She thanked me for my concern, and linked me to a letter her party has already sent on the matter. I have yet to hear back from Hon. Mr. Ashfield, or his office.

Dear Hon. Mr Keith Ashfield,

I am writing because I feel very concerned about proposed government cuts to Coast Guard’s Marine Communication and Traffic Services. In an effort to save costs, the Coast Guard has proposed slashing overtime and holiday time for its operators, leaving the BC’s MCTS stations vulnerable to understaffing. Continue reading Shiny New Guest Blogger, Bearing a Letter →

MCTS To Lose Staff To Save Money

January 4, 2012Anti-Automation, Boats, British Columbia, Canada, Coast Guard, Communication, Cruise Ship, Government, Lighthouses, Medical Emergency, On The Job, Radio, Search & Rescue, Ships, Ships & Shipping, Transportation, UnionBC, British Columbia, Canada, CG, Coast Guard, lighthouse, litehouse, marine, marine traffic, MCTS, MCTSO, reduction, ships, staff, staff reduction, stations, traffic, vesselsretlkpr

For those of you that do not know, MCTS (Marine Communications and Traffic Services) is “the Branch of the Canadian Coast Guard that provides communications and vessel traffic services to the sea-going public”.

“MCTS monitors for distress radio signals; provides the communications link between vessels in distress and the JRCC/MRSC; sends safety information; handles public communication; and, regulates the flow of vessel traffic in some areas. MCTS is an important link in the SAR system”.

The above is a quote from the official Canadian government website on Maritime Search and Rescue. (about half-way down the page)

Continue reading MCTS To Lose Staff To Save Money →

Merry Christmas 2011

December 25, 2011Adult Memories, British Columbia, Christmas, Lighthouses, Weathergreeting, lighthouse, litehouse, Merry Christmas, websiteretlkpr

Scan-110727-0020 — McInnes Island Lighthouse c. 1980s

Merry Christmas to all my readers and their families. I hope that Christmas brings you all a very happy time, and that the New Year of 2012 is fantastic!

As a Christmas gift to me, please pass along the address of this webpage lighthousememories.ca to all your friends and family and work associates.

Thank you, and Merry Christmas!

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Remember the lighthouse keepers – they are on duty for you 24/7, just like police, firemen, air traffic controllers, and numerous other essential services.

Lighthouse Keepers at Chrome Key in Two Rescues – special reprint

November 14, 2011Anti-Automation, Automation, British Columbia, Coast Guard, Incidents, Keepers, Lighthouses, On The Job, Search & RescueChrome, lighthouse, litehouse, rescue, Williamsonretlkpr

The following article appeared in 2010 and I received permission to publish it here to show the work that lighthouse keepers do, but is not part of their job description.

This is why we need lighthouse keepers! Keep the lights manned!

Another Chrome Island rescue appeared here on my website.

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2003_0109ebaysell20110053_a — Chrome Island - photo Leslie Williamson

Lighthouse keepers key in two rescues – with permission from Oceanside Star

Nelson Eddy, Special to the Star – Published: Thursday, December 02, 2010

The Coast Guard Auxiliary Unit 59 in Deep Bay has rescued two mariners in the last two weeks. Both times the lighthouse keepers on Chrome Island were instrumental in expediting the rescue.

The first incident occurred Saturday, Nov. 20 between 12:10 p.m. and 3:50 p.m. Continue reading Lighthouse Keepers at Chrome Key in Two Rescues – special reprint →

I Saw a Sunfish

November 12, 2011Adult Memories, British Columbia, Fishing, Keepers, Lighthouses, On The Job, Recreation, Weatherfish, lighthouse, litehouse, McInnes, Mondfische, Sunfish, wildliferetlkpr

sendung27779_v-contentgross — One of 19 photos from the NDR website - three short videos are also there

Last night I saw a documentary on the German TV channel NDR about searching for Sunfish (Mola mola) – Mondfische in the German language which means Moonfish – off the California Coast and off the Italian island of Elba in the Mediterranean Sea.

Now, this is a website about lighthouses – why would I be writing about Sunfish?

sunfishinwater — Small sunfish in the water - photo Paul Howells

Well one year warm California currents moved north – as far north as Prince Rupert, BC. I am not too sure of the exact year but judging from the years with warmest sea surface temperatures ¹ I would guess it to be about 1984 as I remember an assistant ² named Roger Mogg on station at the time. Continue reading I Saw a Sunfish →

Saving Lives Part of the Job on Chrome Island – special reprint

November 9, 2011Anti-Automation, British Columbia, Government, Incidents, Keepers, Lighthouses, On The Job, Search & RescueChrome, lighthouse, litehouse, rescue, Williamsonretlkpr

The following article appeared in 2010 and I received permission to publish it here to show the work that lighthouse keepers do, but is not part of their job description.

This is why we need lighthouse keepers! Keep the lights manned!

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Saving lives part of the job on Chrome Island – with permission from Oceanside Star Pamela Suzanne, Smyth Special to the Star – Published: Thursday, August 12, 2010

If you ever hear your spouse say, “Oh look dear, there’s a couch in the sky,” think twice before calling mental health because every few years this happens, especially over Chrome Island.

saving-lives_a37 — The picturesque Chrome Island light station, off Deep Bay and Denman Island in Baynes Sound, has helped many a mariner over its rocks to warmth and safety - Photo by Pamela Suzanne Smyth

Since 1981, some 48 lighthouse keepers have been moved on and off the ‘yellow rock’ situated near the southern tip of Denman Island in Baynes Sound.

Recently, Adam Pardiac, 9, and sister Sarah, 13, were thrilled when their uncle Gary and granddad Cliff took them there this summer. Greeted by India, the beacon’s watchdog, and lighthouse keeper Roger Williamson, the children were shown the gardens, environmental devices and petroglyphs. Continue reading Saving Lives Part of the Job on Chrome Island – special reprint →

British Columbia Lighthouse Keeper Database – a work in progress!

October 27, 2011Adult Memories, British Columbia, Coast Guard, Database, Genealogy, History, In Memorium, Information, Keepers, Lighthouses, Old Website, Operators, Radiodatabase, dates, DB, keepers, lighthouse, lighthouse keepers, litehouse, service, stationsretlkpr

This is the information that started the whole Lighthouse Memories website. In 2005 I started to collect the names of lighthouse keepers, and the stations they had manned. Because of this list people sent me stories, documents and photos and the website was born.

Click on the photo below to see the database pages and a link to the Database.

LI Database — BC Lighthouse Keeper Database

Search and Rescue (SAR), Canada

October 25, 2011British Columbia, Canada, Government, Information, Lighthouses, Medical Emergency, Search & RescueBC, Canada, CASARA, lighthouse, litehouse, rescue, SARretlkpr

Canadian-SAR-Regions — Canadian SAR Regions

One of the responsibilities of Canadian lighthouse keepers is to assist and help in Search and Rescue (SAR). They are part of the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) and can be called upon to assist in a search at any time, be it for missing people in boats, aircraft, or other forms of transportation.

In fact lighthouse keepers, because of their location, are ideally situated to assist in SAR activities. It is too bad that the CCG does not promote this side of lighthouse activities, and provide better training and equipment. Most of the SAR activities done by lightkeepers are done with their own equipment – be it boats, radios, scanners, survival suits, etc. More on this in another post.

SAR is a large community in Canada, but a branch of SAR that is not too well known by the public, except for those involved, is CASARA (Civil Air Search and Rescue Association).¹ Continue reading Search and Rescue (SAR), Canada →

Website – Rough Radio – Wireless on the BC Coast

October 22, 2011Adult Memories, Advertisement, British Columbia, Construction, Equipment, Genealogy, History, Information, Lighthouses, On The Job, Operators, Photos, RadioFrank | Statham, genealogy, lighthouse, litehouse, radio, websiteretlkpr

This is a promotion for my friend Frank Statham’s website Rough Radio – Wireless on the British Columbia Coast.

As I started off collecting lighthouse keeper names for genealogy records, Frank started with a collection of photographs, and with his past work as a radio operator, his interest was sparked into creating a website to help people remember the early days of radio on the BC coast. He also has been keeping a list of station personnel which you will find here.

The quotes below from Frank’s website show that lighthouses came first, but with the advent of radio, the two worked closely together, in fact sometimes so close together that they were on the same station – e.g. Estevan Point or Pachena Point.

“At the end of the 19th Century, the west coast of Canada was dangerous place for the movement of vessels. There was little European settlement along the coast north of Victoria. The only navigational aids for vessel traffic consisted of a scattering of lighthouses.”

“The 1907 Canadian Dominion Government, in an effort to provide some measure of safety for mariners, implemented a plan to provide a life saving trail along the Juan de Fuca Strait Vancouver Island, lifeboat stations, and wireless radio stations. The first five wireless stations, Vancouver, Victoria, Pachena Point and Estevan Point were all operational by January 1908.” Continue reading →

Some photo samples from Frank’s website below:

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Why We Need MORE Lighthouses in British Columbia

October 21, 2011Automation, British Columbia, Canada, Coast Guard, Government, Helicopters, Information, Lighthouses, Maps, News, Planes, Search & Rescue, Ships, Transportation, Travel, WeatherBC, Canada, distances, lighthouse, litehouse, mapretlkpr

One of the arguments for destaffing the lighthouses in British Columbia (BC), Canada is that they are no longer needed because all vessels have the Global Positioning System (GPS). Canadian mariners must move into the 21st Century they say!

Have you ever looked at British Columbia? The size of British Columbia?

british-columbia-map — Note the three roads to Vancouver, Bella Bella, and Prince Rupert

British Columbia is the westernmost province of Canada, bordered by the Pacific Ocean. With an area of 944,735 square kilometers (364,764 sq mi) it is Canada’s third-largest province. The province itself is eleven times the size of Austria, where I live; nearly four times the size of Great Britain, two and one-half times larger than Japan and larger than every U.S. state except Alaska. ^{1 Continue reading Why We Need MORE Lighthouses in British Columbia →}