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Class action lawsuit started after whale-watching disaster

On Behalf of | Jun 10, 2016 | Class Action Litigation |

In October of last year, a whale-watching boat called the Leviathan II overturned at sea, sinking below the freezing water. Six passengers died in the incident. Those who survived were exposed to severe mental and emotional trauma. There were also physical injuries, even to those who made it out. The whole incident happened off the coast of Tofino, British Columbia.

On behalf of these survivors and the families of those who were killed, a class action lawsuit has been started.

The accident has been called entirely preventable. While the water can always be treacherous, there were steps that could have been taken to keep the boat from capsizing, keeping those passengers — who trusted the company and the crew to keep them safe — alive and well.

For one thing, the boat was not fit to operate in those conditions. The trip should never have gotten to the point where the boat would sink at all. The owner of the boat, along with the skipper, should have understood that the area they were travelling in was notoriously dangerous. They put the passengers at risk when they never should have done so. Perhaps things would have been different with another vessel or another route, but the combination on that day proved to be deadly.

It’s clear that, while the incident was by no means intentional, reasonable steps that could have kept people safe and alive were skipped. It’s important for the survivors and the families of those who were killed in this tragic accident to know what rights they have to compensation going forward.

Source: Rochon Genova, “Leviathan II,” accessed June 10, 2016