Panel data provided by Madison's Canadian Lumber Reporter.

Heroes Are Hartley Bay Residents

By 250 News

(map courtesy google Earth)

The Heroes of the sinking of the Queen of the North are the people of Hartley Bay according to most people who are now checked into the Crest Hotel in Prince Rupert. 

It was pitch black when the people of the tiny community took to their boats to try and rescue the 101 passengers and crew who had fled to lifeboats when the vessel struck a rock about 800 meters off shore of Gil Island . 

The Queen of the North lies in about 120 fathoms of water. 

As one crew person said,"There is a tiny little Island near the shore and that is what we hit." 

One crew member was only able to escape the sinking vessel after she was able to push a locker blocking her door. She awoke with a bang and when she was thrown out of bed she said, “I was walking in water “.  She fled the ship and went to the life rafts wearing only her pajamas. 

The ships crew quarters are located below the car deck at the bottom of the ship. The accident happened at 12.35 AM, about a half hour after a crew change had taken place. Most of the crew was asleep below the decks at the time of the mishap. 

The shore where the sinking took place, starts at about 18 ft, then drops to about 720 feet and then to over 1400 ft. The vessel is believed sitting on the bottom in about 720 feet of water.

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