A retiring Canadian Coast Guard member who has spent almost 20 years at Kitsilano Base says it is time the federal government took the blinders off and stopped gagging its employees.
Gerry Moores scoffs at claims by tory MP James moore and others who say safety won’t be affected by closing Kits Base.
“I would suggest I know quite a bit more than James Moore about marine search and rescue. I would say if you want to have somebody spinning the tale for you as a politician is one thing but when you want to know what the truth is you come to the people who are involved in the business. You don’t muzzle them you encourage there input.”
Moores was asked if by closing Kits Coast Guard base lives will be at risk.
“In my view yes because the situation today with the person who jumped from the Granville bridge he was bascially just clinging to life by his finger nails when we got to him and we were on scene in two minutes now if somebody had to come from Vancouver harbour or Lynnwood marina where we are told the auxillary is going to set up it may well have been too late for that man.”
Moores says his co-workers and others in the Coast Guard can’t speak about it but now he can and their reaction to the federal government closing kits base is going over like a lead balloon within the Coast Guard.
“Anyone that I have spoken to about this decision is disbelief they just cannot fathom how Canada’s third largest city with a growing marine trade with a burgeoning pleasure boat population and prjections of yet further increases the major emergency marine response unit could be, even considered, to be shut down.”
The base is slated to be closed this Spring and the federal government insists neither public safety or lives are at risk.
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