Thank you, Mr. Da Pont.
As I indicated at the start of my presentation, we have noted that some issues were raised in the media in the days following the capsizing of L'Acadien II about the language of service provided to the mother of the missing sealer, Carl Aucoin.
As I indicated, we have brought the audio tape exchanges with Ms. Aucoin and we had planned to play them for you. The search for Mr. Aucoin was reduced on Saturday, March 29, which is to say that the active search effort was stopped. The divers had spent an enormous amount of time trying to find Mr. Aucoin's body and, after a fairly extended period of time, the search effort was reduced. It then became an operation directed by the local police force.
Before the search was actually reduced, the coordinator of the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre Halifax asked the Sûreté du Québec to contact the family of the sealer to advise them of the change in posture. I want to emphasize that it is normal operating procedure to have local officials on the ground contact the families in these situations. The Sûreté du Québec later confirmed that they had unfortunately not made contact and apologized to the family members.
As a result, and most unfortunately, the mother of the missing sealer learned about the change in posture from media reports. She contacted the Coast Guard's Marine Communications and Traffic Services Centre in the Quebec region the next day, Sunday, March 30, to seek information. She was provided with the 1-800 number of the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax, which she called the following morning. In this instance, the Canadian Forces Aeronautical Coordinator, who possesses an EBB level, answered the call. As you can hear, Ms. Aucoin wanted to know whether search efforts to find her son had been stopped and was informed that the RCMP was now responsible for the matter. She was also given a telephone number in order to reach the RCMP.
Later that same day, Mr. Aucoin's aunt contacted the Coast Guard Regional Operations Centre in Halifax for additional information about the search reduction. The Acting Director of Maritime Services, who is bilingual, returned that call and provided additional information. The next day, on Monday, he flew to the Magdalen Islands, where he remained for a period of time and became the prime contact for all further communication with family members.
You will therefore hear the exchange between Ms. Aucoin and her respondent. As we stated, we have obtained Ms. Aucoin's permission to play this recording to you. I would like to express my thanks to her for that. All that remains for us is to listen to the recording.