HMCS Kootenay survivors gather 55 years after tragedy 

HMCS Kootenay survivors gather 55 years after tragedy 

By Ryan Melanson,
Trident Staff 

Members of the “family” of Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Kootenay, including survivors, family members, friends and colleagues, joined together on October 23 to mark 55 years since the Royal Canadian Navy’s (RCN) worst peacetime accident at sea. 

The 1969 explosion and subsequent fire aboard HMCS Kootenay killed nine sailors on the morning of October 23, 1969. It also left 53 members of the ship’s company with serious injuries; three more would die in the weeks and months following the incident. Those who lived were left with physical and mental scars that remain with them today. 

Surviving “Kootenays” gather to mark the anniversary each year, both formally with RCN participation and government proclamations, and with smaller gatherings of the crew. 

“We all sailed aboard Kootenay on that fateful day, and we all believed in the ship’s motto – We Are As One. It’s a motto we still live with, as this gathering proves. We were a crew, and we turned out to be a very good crew,” said Gordon Forbes, who was Kootenay’s weapons officer in 1969, as he read a eulogy for his lost shipmates. 

Comments about the professionalism and tenacity of the crew were also echoed by Dr. Joe Homer, who was the first medical officer to be lowered to the ship via helicopter following the explosion. 

He described the aftermath as one of the most horrific situations he’s encountered in 40 years of practicing medicine, arriving on a ship covered in fire and dense smoke, treating badly burned patients with limited equipment and no access to medical facilities. Those who were still physically able to fight the fire and assist shipmates did crucial work during that time. 

“By and large, they were a young and inexperienced crew. Yet they fought hard, they got the fire under control, and they saved the ship. That much is certain,” he said. 

The explosion happened because of a faulty bearing installation in the ship’s starboard gearbox, which failed during full power trials off the English channel. Lessons from the disaster were numerous and reshaped the way the RCN and other Navies plan for damage control at sea. The Navy’s East Coast Damage Control Training Facility (DCTF), which hosted part of the commemoration on October 23, is named Kootenay in honour of the ship and crew. 

“I sincerely hope the Royal Canadian Navy and Canadian Armed Forced will continue to honour the dedication and sacrifice of the Kootenays long after we have passed,” Dr. Homer added. 

Following a ceremony and wreath laying at DCTF Kootenay, an additional gathering was held at the Bonaventure Anchor Memorial in Point Pleasant Park, which serves as a memorial to RCN members who died serving the Navy during peacetime.