A 40-foot sailboat ran aground on Mudge Island Tuesday afternoon, stuck in swift currents along Dodd's Narrows. (submitted photo/RCM-SAR Station 27)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

sailboat rescue

Sailboat recovered from Mudge Island rocks following early morning operation

May 29, 2025 | 9:08 AM

NANAIMO — A mission spanning two days involving multiple agencies resulted in the successful recovery of a yacht stuck in Dodd Narrows.

Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue Station 27 crews in Nanaimo were alerted on Tuesday, May 27 just after 8 p.m. to a vessel running aground on the northern tip of Mudge Island in Dodd Narrows.

Russell Berg, spokesperson for Station 27 told NanaimoNewsNOW the boat’s position and the roughly 5.5 knot current running through the Narrows at the time made an immediate salvage operation almost impossible, without risking further damage.

“Our boat is able to hold position in the middle of that current, but we were using roughly half our power just to stand still and if we’re going to pull this very heavy boat off against the currents, we were not confident that the stresses on the lines, the stresses on the attachment points, the stresses on the boat we were pulling off would be able to be done safely.”

The sailboat was relatively undamaged, however crews needed to wait for the right time to safely execute
removal of the vessel from the rocks. (submitted photo/RCM-SAR Station 27)

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Dodd Narrows is a channel of water between Mudge and Vancouver Islands, known for fast tide changes and strong currents.

Crews from RCM-SAR Ladysmith were also on scene, with the Canadian Coast Guard joining roughly 30 minutes later.

Berg said the Coast Guard made the final decision, in consultation with SAR and the boat’s captain, not to attempt a rescue of the boat immediately, instead check-ins were done hourly overnight by the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre.

“They all agreed it’s not the right time to do this. We’ve got to wait for a change in the change in the tides, so that we could be using the current to our benefits, rather than fighting it.”

A second attempt began at around 4:30 a.m., with the Coast Guard performing a “Halyard Pull” maneuver where a tow line is run to the top of the sailboat’s mast to help right the ship.

Other lines were attached to the vessel in a bid to pull it away.

“It pivots the boats off of the rocks, so if they’re pulling on the top of the mast, that kind of straightens the boat out, and then we pull on the bow,” Berg added. “That combination frees the boat off the rocks.”

There were no reported injuries and the vessel was towed to Nanaimo Harbour, near Saysutshun, for further assessment.

Crews from Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue, as well as the Canadian Coast Guard, attended the scene. (submitted photo/RCM-SAR Station 27)

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