Victoria has a new Canadian Coast Guard search and rescue station in James Bay
The Federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans and Canadian Coast Guard announced its official opening Friday morning.
The station is in service now and enhances the Coast Guard's marine search and rescue capacity around Victoria and in the eastern and central Strait of Juan de Fuca.
The Victoria station is located at the Victoria Canadian Coast Guard Base in James Bay.
It will operate 24-hours-a-day.
In addition, the Coast Guard will deploy two new search and rescue lifeboats in 2019. The CCGS McIntyre Bay will be stationed at Prince Rupert, and the CCGS Pachena Bay will serve the Port Hardy area as an interim measure. These vessels will able to operate up to 100 nautical miles from shore, delivering modern search and rescue capability.