A Russian container ship that lost power and was drifting dangerously close to a rocky coast off northern British Columbia, is safe and being towed to port for repairs.
The Simushir, en route from Washington state to Russia, was reached by an ocean-going tugboat on Saturday afternoon (October 18), after previous attempts by the Canadian Coast Guard to secure the vessel failed.
The ship with 11 crewmembers lost power on Thursday evening (October 16). There was concern the vessel, with its cargo of containers and mining equipment, could run aground on Haida Gwaii, spilling bunker fuel.
The incident is likely to rekindle debate over oil tanker safety on the West Coast, the expected terminus of the Northern Gateway pipeline proposed by Enbridge.
More oil tankers are also expected to ply the coast if a second pipeline proposal, by Kinder Morgan, to expand its existing Trans Mountain line to Vancouver, is approved.
The area is also being considered for a number of liquefied natural gas plants that would ship natural gas to Asia.
