BC Ferries has cancelled sailings Saturday afternoon as Environment Canada’s wind warning for Vancouver Island continues.
Noon and 2 p.m. sailings on the Tsawwassen-Swartz Bay route have been cancelled due to high winds. Decisions for the 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. sailings will be made closer to the time, according to the BC Ferries website.
UPDATED #ServiceNotice #Tsawwassen - #SwartzBay #QueenofNewWestminster 12:00pm ex. Tsawwassen & 2:00pm ex. Swartz Bay cancelled due to adverse weather. 4:00pm ex. Tsawwassen & 6:00pm ex. Swartz Bay will be assessed closer to sailing. Service Notice: https://t.co/3wv8kjs4Ob ^rz
— BC Ferries (@BCFerries) December 22, 2018
The run between Port McNeill, Alert Bay and Sointula also has cancellations until 3:45 p.m.
Sailings between Hornby Island and Denman Island East are cancelled until 2:40 p.m.
“The safety of our passengers and crew is of primary importance to us,” the service notices read. “We don’t take the decision to cancel sailings lightly, as we know customers rely on us to get to their destinations. We will resume service as soon as it is safe to do so.”
Environment Canada is calling for wind gusts up to 90 kilometres per hour over coastal and north sections of the Island. In the eastern region and Victoria, winds are to reach 70 kilometres per hour.
Thursday’s storm, which brought wind gusts of about 100 kilometre per hour to the Island, led to the cancellation of 80 sailings across 12 routes including between Startz Bay and Tsawwassen throughout the morning and afternoon.
READ MORE: High winds cause transportation delays across Vancouver Island
READ MORE: 60,000 still without power; wind warning continues across Vancouver Island
The following are cancelled sailings:
For Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay on the Queen of New Westminster:
- 12 p.m. departing Tsawwassen
- 2 p.m. departing Swartz Bay
For Port McNeill, Alert Bay and Sointula:
- 12:20 p.m. departing Alert Bay
- 1:10 p.m. departing Port McNeill
- 2:20 p.m. departing Port McNeill
- 3:45 p.m. departing Sointula
For Hornby Island and Denman Island East:
- 11 a.m. departing Hornby Island
- 11:45 a.m. departing Denman Island
- 12:05 p.m. departing Hornby Island
- 12:45 p.m. departing Denman Island
- 1 p.m. departing Hornby Island
- 1:45 p.m. departing Denman Island
- 2 p.m. departing Hornby Island
- 2:40 p.m. departing Denman Island
shalu.mehta@goldstreamgazette.com