As part of our ongoing commitment to safety, operational guidelines call for regular and frequent safety drills for all crew members on every ferry.
Over 1,000 drills will be conducted this year to ensure the highest safety standards for our ferries and crews.
In the event of an emergency, always follow the instructions of ferry’s personnel.
Important: in the case of an emergency, vehicle access may be prohibited.
Emergency signals
The following signals are used to crew members to an emergency:
- Fire
Continuous ringing of the alarm bell.
- Person overboard
Three long soundings of the whistle and general alarm bell. Keep outer decks clear where rescue operations are underway.
- Boat/Raft stations
Seven (or more) short soundings, followed by one long sounding of the ferry’s general alarm and/or whistle.
Signals will be followed by an announcement explaining the nature of the emergency. If you hear a signal, don’t panic. Our crew will take immediate charge of the situation and clearly explain exactly what to do.
Evacuation
If the ferry needs to be evacuated, inflatable slides, similar to those used for passenger aircraft, can be deployed by crew members on the port side and the starboard side on Deck 2 (main car deck).
Using the same basic principles as playground slides, and looking much like them, the inflatable slides are easy for all passengers to use by sliding quickly down to a life raft.
- There is a 100-person life raft, and a 50-person life raft on each side of the ferry, giving the ability to evacuate all passengers using just one side of the ferry if needed
- In total, the life rafts can accommodate more people than the maximum the ferry can carry
Should there ever be a need to evacuate the ferry, crew members will direct you to the evacuation area.
Rescue boat
This ferry has one six-person rescue boat located on the starboard side of Deck 4.
Life jackets
Life jackets are stowed in clearly marked lockers on Deck 4.
Three sizes of life jackets are available:
- One for infants less than 33 pounds (15 kg)
- One for children up to 90 pounds (41 kg)
- One for adults
In the unlikely event of an emergency, crew members will instruct you on the proper use of your life jacket.
Fire suppression
Fire extinguishers are located in all interior and exterior passenger areas, plus:
- Manual pull stations throughout the ferry
- Manual deluge system on the vehicle deck
- CO2 fire suppression flood system in the Engine Room
- The machinery spaces are also fitted with a local water mist system over main machinery and generators
Stability
This ferry meets all Canadian stability requirements including the TP 10943 (SOLAS ’90 (Safety of Life at Sea)) damage stability standards for two compartment damage.
Watertight
The hull is subdivided into seven watertight compartments. One watertight door is fitted. Watertight integrity is monitored continuously from the bridge. All watertight opening and hatches are inspected, tested and serviced annually.
Monitoring for safety
This ferry has video cameras installed, allowing the bridge and engineering crew to continuously monitor all areas of the ferry and remotely activate safety systems quickly. The crew also maintains regular inspection rounds of the ferry during the sailing.
