A 39-year-old man is facing charges of impaired operation of a vessel and assault, after a boat he was allegedly operating ran aground in Nova Scotia.
Around 10:30 p.m. Saturday, police and a Coast Guard Ship responded to a call of a six-metre Cape Islander boat marooned on Sandy Cove, with people possibly unaccounted for.
Police say the vessel was abandoned on a rocky shoreline when they arrived.
According to police, five people were on the boat sailing to Sandy Cove when the vessel crashed Saturday evening. Officers say they found two passengers on the rocks while the other three were in Halifax. All passengers escaped injury.
“A male ended up being arrested for impaired operation of a vehicle. He was returned to the station, where he blew over on the breathalyzer, so he was charged with impaired operation and blowing over .08,” says Sgt. Bill Morris of the Halifax Regional Police.
The man who was allegedly operating the vessel faces charges of impaired operation of a vessel, failing a breathalyzer, assault, and uttering threats.
Police say the charges of assault and threats are alleged to have occurred prior to the boat running aground.
The boat's owner, Borden Garrison, says he loaned the craft to some friends, never expecting them to travel too far from Halifax.
“Nothing salvageable, no insurance or anything,” Garrison say. “Too old to insure it.”
Garrison says the boat was about 40 years old and he was renovating it to sell. He says the wreck comes not just as a surprise, but as a financial hit.
“I just want to recover what's drifting on the shore, get the motor and things out of here so there are no more environmental charges,” he says.
Garrison might face further fines if the Coast Guard finds any pollutants from fuel or tools left in the water.
He and his friends will have to wait until the tide is high enough to bring the boat back ashore.
“This is not readily accessible by heavy equipment and you can't get at it from the water side either, there's a lot of rocks and stuff out there, so it's very difficult place to get at,” says Keith Laidlaw of the Canadian Coast Guard. “Now as the boat breaks up, hopefully they'll be able to get it up onto shore and remove it that way.”
Under Nova Scotia law, driving a boat while under the influence is the same as driving a car. A first offence comes with a fine of up to $1,200 and if convicted you could lose your licence for a year.
“They’re always on the lookout for people that are impaired. We’re basically trying to educate the public to avoid any mishaps or any incidents where somebody could get hurt and or killed,” says Morris.
Police say the man who was allegedly operating the boat will face charges in Halifax provincial court Monday.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Emily Baron Cadloff.
