At Jamie’s, the safety of our passengers and crew is our highest priority. We have been operating since 1982, making us the longest continuously running whale watching and adventure tour company on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. As part of our ongoing commitment to safety, we have an extensive crew training and vessel maintenance schedule in place. We have also made significant investments in ensuring that we have safety and life-saving equipment on our vessels that not only meet, but exceed Transport Canada standards.
Safety Equipment
- Our vessels are equipped with an extensive list of life-saving equipment including fire extinguishers, engine room fire suppression systems, first aid kits, flares, life rings, life rafts and reboarding devices.
- In addition to the Transport Canada required lifejackets that have always been onboard our vessels, we have invested in manually inflatable Personal Floatation Devices (PFDs) to be worn by passengers when on outer decks.
- We have equipped all of our vessels with Electronic Position Indicating Radio Beacons (EPIRBS).
- On our open Zodiac-style vessels we provide all passengers and crew with full-body “cruiser suits” for warmth and floatation.
- We have installed cradles that make it easier to launch life rafts from our vessels and that do not require lifting by staff.
- All of our vessels have communications equipment such as VHF stationary radios and backup handheld radios.
Safety Training
- Our crew undergoes extensive training and participates in bi-weekly vessel safety drills. These drills include but are not limited to launching the rescue boat, life jacket and PFD inspection, fire, man overboard, collision, grounding, critical systems breakdown, capsize, and medical emergency.
- All of our captains and deckhands have many years of experience working on various ocean-going vessels. Some have spent their entire lives on and around the ocean, specifically on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. A significant amount of our crew has been employed for over 10 years with Jamie’s Whaling Station.
- Our crew certifications include 60-ton limited Master, SVMO-R, SVOP, Marine Advanced First Aid, Marine Basic First Aid, STCW Marine Basic Safety, MED A1/A2/A3, ROC-MC, RPSC and Seafarers Medicals.
Safety Procedures and Comfort
- All of our vessels conduct radio check-ins with our offices onshore approximately every 30 minutes.
- Jamie’s larger cruiser-style vessels undergo annual inspections by Transport Canada. Our smaller vessels (up to 12 passengers) meet the requirements of the Transport Canada Small Vessel Compliance Program.
- Before embarking on every tour, passengers receive a full safety briefing conducted by the crew, including the location of all safety equipment and gear.
- On our Zodiac-style vessels, in addition to cruiser suits required by Transport Canada, we provide passengers with rain jackets, toques and gloves for added warmth and protection on colder days.
