Tsunami Aftermath: Unmanned Ghost Ship Heads Toward British Columbia

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Who doesn’t love a maritime ghost story, right? And the key to a really good maritime ghost story is an appropriately creepy ghost ship. Kind of like this one…

From this story in the Calgary Herald:

A Japanese “ghost ship” found adrift off British Columbia’s West Coast is tangible proof that tsunami debris will reach B.C. far earlier than expected, Tofino’s mayor said Sunday. Perry Schmunk told The Province the discovery of the unmanned 150-foot fishing vessel confirms his suspicion that debris already hitting Vancouver Island shores is a result of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan just 12 months ago.

“All of the computer models say it is one or two years away, but I think the ship proves that it’s coming,” said Schmunk after a routine surveillance patrol discovered the unmanned ship about 150 nautical miles off the southern coast of Haida Gwaii. “I’m concerned about it, but I’m not worried about it.

“The good news is we are monitoring it — that’s how the ship was found.” Schmunk said beachwalkers are already finding items he believes can be traced to the tsunami. “People are used to walking on pristine shores, but now their eyes are open,” said Schmunk, who works at a local lodge.

“Guests are coming in, saying ‘I found this, I found that.’ ” Transport Canada spokeswoman Sau Sau Liu said five agencies are monitoring the floating ghost ship…The most pressing question for now is where the ship will end up.”It’s too soon to tell,” said a staffer at Victoria’s Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, which was contacted when the vessel was originally spotted. “It’s a shot in the dark — it all depends on the on-site weather.”

Have any of you west coast anglers started finding tsunami debris on your beaches?