20°c A few clouds
25°c Chance of thundershowers
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
'We had run aground,' ferry officer testifies
VANCOUVER -- First came an unusually loud noise and then the boat rocked, but the colours of the passenger ferry's radar screen are what Kevin Hilton recalls most vividly.
The second officer on the Queen of the North remembers rushing from a meal in the lounge to the bridge and spotting evidence the vessel had crashed. "I could see on the radar there was a lot of red," Hilton told the B.C. Supreme Court on Monday, explaining red on the screen represents land.
"I could see the ship was right up against the red. We had run aground," he said of the incident just after midnight on March 22, 2006, when the vessel missed a turn while sailing in B.C.'s Inside Passage and struck Gil Island.
Hilton's testimony about the sinking of the BC Ferries vessel off the northwest coast of B.C. came during the trial of Karl Lilgert, who is accused of criminal negligence causing the deaths of two passengers.
He described arriving at the deck and hearing quartermaster Karen Bricker tell him to "Come quickly, something terrible has happened."
He also saw Lilgert, the fourth officer, who earlier had traded responsibilities with him for navigating the ship.
Hilton told court he was surprised Lilgert had returned to the bridge early from a break, not long after his former lover Karen Bricker arrived there for her role as quartermaster.
Court has heard Lilgert and Bricker were working alone together for the first time since their affair had ended.
-- The Canadian Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 19, 2013 A8
More Canada
- Back to Top
- Return to Canada
More Canada
(1 of 50 articles for this week)
One in eight world bird species at threat of extinction, report says
06/19/2013 11:16 PM 0
Poll
Most Popular Canada
- Corruption in Quebec: A blow-by-blow account
- Liberal MP, former leader Bob Rae stepping down to focus on First Nations
- 'Shocking' half of First Nations kids living in poverty, new study finds
- Fast and curious driver caught going 221 km/h loses car, nets double the fine
- Commons breaks for summer with reeling Conservatives poised for major retooling
- Border agency warns of telephone scam, says it doesn't make calls
- 30,000 people homeless on a given night, first-ever national tally suggests
- Tory attacks on Trudeau boomerang, raise questions about PMO involvement
- Montreal will get its new, new mayor Tuesday
- Children taken from Mennonite community as more abuse charges are laid
- Sobeys gobbles up Safeway
- Manitoba restaurant stops selling giant hamburger "for obvious reasons"
- Montreal's interim mayor, a self-styled corruption fighter, faces fraud charges
- Corruption in Quebec: A blow-by-blow account
- Woman charged after drink tossed at embattled Toronto Mayor Rob Ford
- Fast and curious driver caught going 221 km/h loses car, nets double the fine
- Questions about Mayor Rob Ford overshadow news of huge police raids
- Trudeau to compensate charities that paid him to help raise money
- Liberal MP, former leader Bob Rae stepping down to focus on First Nations
- Training manuals for Parliament guides boost Senate, praise two-party system
- Woman run over three times by her own car
- Sobeys gobbles up Safeway
- Controversy around Toronto mayor Rob Ford continues to grow
- Glover, Bezan fight suspension from Parliament
- Alleged Rob Ford drug video 'gone,' source tells Gawker
- Gawker hits $200K for 'crack cocaine' video as mayor's senior aides resign
- Two men now facing first-degree murder charges in Tim Bosma test drive death
- 'I am not stepping aside,' Mayor Rob Ford says, as 'crack video' scandal rages
- Mother cries, yells as driver appears in court charged with killing boy on patio
- Manitoba restaurant stops selling giant hamburger "for obvious reasons"
- 30,000 people homeless on a given night, first-ever national tally suggests
- Next! Montreal seeks yet another mayor after second one quits in scandal
- Hike in disclosure for public servants should apply to unions too: Liberals
- Corruption in Quebec: A blow-by-blow account
- The Great One firmly believes NHL will return to Quebec City someday
- 'Shocking' half of First Nations kids living in poverty, new study finds
- Border agency warns of telephone scam, says it doesn't make calls
- Sobeys gobbles up Safeway
- Senate's hired motivational speakers scrubbed after planned pep talk goes public
- 'Shocking' half of First Nations kids living in poverty, new study finds
- Manitoba restaurant stops selling giant hamburger "for obvious reasons"
- Feds want to extend blanket of permanent secrecy over 11 new agencies
- 30,000 people homeless on a given night, first-ever national tally suggests
- Canadian and American missing for nearly two weeks in Mexico
- B.C. is 'in the risk zone' for mega-earthquake along the coast: study
- Squirrel takes whirl in toilet; woman rescues rodent with barbecue tongs
- Wendy's 9-patty burger extinct
- Sobeys gobbles up Safeway
- Glover, Bezan fight suspension from Parliament
- Woman run over three times by her own car
- Ottawa threatens 'retaliatory measures' over new U.S. meat labelling regulations
- Prominent Canadians back petition to rename Victoria Day to honour aboriginals
- Canadian and American missing for nearly two weeks in Mexico
- Banff officials hunt for cougar that man fought off with skateboard
- Harper government brings in new performance review system for public service
- Senate's hired motivational speakers scrubbed after planned pep talk goes public
- 'Shocking' half of First Nations kids living in poverty, new study finds
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Have Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?
Login SubscribeHave Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?
SubscribeThe Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.