Daughter Of Montreal Canadiens VP Missing In Atlantic Waters
Posted December 10, 2006 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
rogue wave apparently swept her overboard
The missing woman is the daughter of Montreal Canadiens Executive Vice President Bob Gainey and has been in the water since about 9:30pm Friday night.
The Habs V.P. and General Manager has temporarily stepped down from his position with the club and is with his three other children.
“In respecting the privacy of Mr. Gainey and his family, the Canadiens will not issue any further comment at this time,” reads a statement released by the hockey club. “For the time being, Mr. Pierre Gauthier will manage the responsibilities of Mr. Gainey with the Canadiens.”
Laura Gainey is a volunteer on the 55-metre Nova-Scotia-based Picton Castle, a sailing and long distance education vessel, which was on its way to the Caribbean when it encountered the rough conditions.
Search and rescue teams and Gainey’s crew mates are holding out hope as the waters she disappeared in are relatively warm. Dan Moreland, the senior captain of the ship who’s ashore in Lunenburg, N.S, said Gainey is in good physical condition.
“We know that she was alive and conscious when she went over the side. We know that, and that the water is warm are all pluses,” he told CP24 Sunday.
“But let’s make no bones about it. This is a very hazardous situation, and the sea is hostile.”
Moreland described Gainey as a strong swimmer and a “well loved crew member.”
The search effort continued Sunday with U.S. Coast Guard vessels scouring the waters and aircraft scanning the area at first light. While hope for Gainey’s survival is still alive, Coast Guard spokeswoman Faith Wisinski noted that as of 9am Sunday the woman had been in the water for 30 hours. It’s expected hypothermia would normally take a person’s life after 36 hours.
Moreland said this awful incident is likely taking the hardest toll on the newest crew members aboard the Picton Castle.
“It’s probably harder for the new crew who, you know, had no way of anticipating anything like this,” he said. “The ones with longer term experience have seen that and know from their own experience, sort of with their history, the work of being a seaman, they are more personally aware of the hazards of sea-going.”
“They are doing well. They are focused on the task at hand. But this is not a good time for anybody.”
The missing woman’s father is also a legend on the ice. Bob Gainey is a former Canadiens captain who won five Stanley Cups from 1973 to 1989. His son Steve also played in the NHL, but is off the ice this season.
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