In The Queen of the North Disaster by Colin Henthorne, Henthorne wrote a letter to the people of Hartley Bay, which helped take care of and rescue survivors on the night of March 22nd, 2006. He sends the following to them:
Dear Chief Councilor,
Please forgive me for being so long before thanking the people of Hartley Bay for their quick, selfless, and expert assistance to us when we were forced to abandon the Queen of the North. I had originally planned to visit and thank all of you in person; unfortunately, the ongoing investigation puts me in a position where I am extremely restricted in the contact I can make.
I was the captain that night and I can say everything done by your village and her boats was superb. If someone was to write a textbook on how a coastal community should respond to marine distress, Hartley Bay would have to be the basis for it.
Please pass on to all the village my sincere thanks.
For superb seamanship, for quick and clear thinking, and the for the will to help, my hat is off to the people of Hartley Bay.
Yours truly,
Captain Colin Henthorne (p. 180)
I think this part was significant because of how selfless the people of such a small village were. The people of Hartley Bay live in a very remote village with limited resources and were about to sleep, until they received the distress call and got up to help. The people sent boats to rescue survivors, and those on land were making food and drinks to keep them warm and even gave out cellphones to call loved ones. They didn’t have much but gave all they could to help. It also made me realize once again how greedy companies can be. A lot of people from outside Hartley Bay wanted to name the replacement ship for the Queen of the North, (now known as MV Northern Adventure) the “Spirit of Hartley Bay” to honor the village. However, that name “wouldn’t fit well with the company’s marketing strategy”. Sometimes, I can be pretty selfish, even with all the things God has given me. The village of Hartley Bay has taught me to be less selfish, and The Queen of the North Disaster has taught me to be more cautious of the media, because if I never read this book, I would probably still believe the ludicrous rumors surrounding what happened on the bridge.