BC Ferries sold reservations for non-existent sailings on holiday Monday
Some BC Ferries passengers arrived at their departure terminal Monday only to learn the sailing they reserved weeks in advance never actually existed.
And with ferries already jam-packed with travellers returning home at the end of the B.C. Day long weekend, some families have subsequently found themselves trapped and unable to return home for another night.
BC Ferries has apologized online and told passengers that sailings were "incorrectly built into our system" on the holiday Monday.
"We sincerely apologize to all customers affected and are giving full refunds for the inconvenience," the company wrote on Twitter.
BC Ferries has not responded to CTV News' requests for more information, including how many passengers were impacted in total and how the mistake happened.
Impacted travellers have said they booked their sailings through the BC Ferries website like any other.
Oliver Fitt, who reserved a direct ferry from Tsawwassen to Salt Spring Island that was supposed to leave at 9:10 a.m., said he even received a reminder email a few days ago.
But when he showed up at the terminal, he learned there was no such sailing scheduled.
"Seems a little bit strange," Fitt told CTV News. "Clearly some things aren't working very well within BC Ferries that need to be addressed."
That sailing was supposed to pick up more passengers on Salt Spring at 10:50 a.m., make another stop at Pender Island at 11:40 a.m., then return everyone to Tsawwassen.
One traveller said she was waiting in the vehicle lineup at the Long Harbour ferry terminal when a BC Ferries employee began approaching cars one by one and informing them their reservation was no longer valid.
Multiple affected passengers told CTV News they felt sorry for the employees working the terminals, who appeared to be just learning about the issue as it was happening.
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Angela Jung
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'He's in our hearts': Family and friends still seek answers one year after Nathan Wise’s disappearance
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
'My family doctor just fired me': Ontario patients frustrated with de-rostering
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Canada Post cracks down on Nunavut loophole to get free Amazon Prime shipping
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.
Wildfire near Fort McMurray more than triples overnight, several evacuation alerts remain in place
The fire burning near Fort McMurray grew from 25 hectares to 5,500 hectares over the weekend.
Putin replaces Russian defence minister in rare cabinet shakeup
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
Man fatally 'slashed in the neck' in downtown Toronto, suspect outstanding
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
WATCH Dashcam video shows terrifying near-miss on two-lane northern Ontario highway
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
Edibles, armchairs and adapters: Here are the recalls for this week
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis edibles and vehicle components.