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Mail mix-up leaves islands letterless

Mail for the islands was left behind in Prince Rupert when the ferry sailed Sunday night for Skidegate, BC Ferries confirmed Monday (Dec. 1).Sarah Cotton, BC Ferries manager of sales and community relations, said the mail mix-up occurred because Canadian Freightways, which carries Canada Post to the islands, had only three confirmed reservations and five trailers travelling to Skidegate.Two trailers were on standby and were left behind in Rupert because the ferry did not have room for them. Unfortunately, one of the trailers was full of mail for islanders.Ms Cotton said Canadian Freightways did not tell BC Ferries staff which trailers should get priority. In the future, she said, BC Ferries will make sure that any trailers containing mail get loaded first, as long as Canadian Freightways lets them know which trailers have the mail.The situation was especially unfortunate because no mail has arrived on the islands since last Wednesday, Nov. 26, said Queen Charlotte mayor Carol Kulesha. The ferry schedule has been a bit different recently due to dock renovations in Prince Rupert, with most arrivals on Monday and Tuesday, and only a few on Wednesday or Thursday. There was no Thursday arrival last week.Ms Kulesha said islanders have been stopping her in the streets to complain about the latest mail problems. The Queen Charlotte mayor has been spearheading efforts to lobby Canada Post since it switched from using the plane to get most mail off the islands to using the ferry."People are very upset and I think they're going to be more upset as the holidays roll around," Ms Kulesha said.