How Canadian tourist boat sank

Canadian authorities believe a whale-watching vessel may have tipped over because the passengers were crowded on one side of the boat.

WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE CAPSIZING OF THE CANADIAN WHALE-WATCHING BOAT:

* Whale-watching vessel MV Leviathan II ran into trouble eight nautical miles off Vancouver Island's west coast just over two hours into the trip

* Passengers crowded on left side of top deck

* Vessel struck by a wave from the right side, rolled over and capsized

*27 people, including three crew, thrown in the water

* Crew deploy one life raft, shoot flares to attract attention of local fishermen

* 21 people rescued

* Those killed were not wearing life jackets, which is not required on vessels of that type

* Five British nationals killed

- David Thomas, 50

- Stephen Thomas, 18

- Katie Taylor, 29

- Nigel Francis Hooker, 63

- Jack Slater, 76

* Search continues for missing Sydney man Raveshan Pillay, 27

Source: Matt Brown, British Columbia Coroners Service/Marc Andre Poisson, Transportation Safety Board of Canada


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Source: AAP



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