BC Ferries loses Horseshoe Bay crash lawsuit

A B.C. Supreme Court justice has ruled against BC Ferries in a case stemming from the crash of the Queen of Oak Bay into a Horseshoe Bay marina in 2005.

The passenger and car ferry lost control in June 2005, plowing into several boats and the marina.

There were no injuries, but28 boats were damaged, resulting in a $3 million insurance payout by the corporation and its insurers.

Investigations into the crash revealed the crash was causedby a missing bolt, or "pin," that ultimately caused the engines to run out of control.

BC Ferries tried to sue two companies it said were responsible for inspecting and servicing the vesselVancouver Drydock Co. and Prime Mover Controls Inc.

But in a ruling released Wednesday, Madame Justice Susan Griffin ruled that BC Ferries made assumptions about what the two companies would do, without having clearly contracted the work.

The language of the contract, Griffin said, did not specify work on the missing part.

BC Ferries has not commented on the ruling.

The allegation of negligence by the companies was part of a larger lawsuit that was split into two parts, and the newly released judgment deals onlywith the first half of the case.

The trial continues.