Only days after it began its season, the Edmonton Queen Riverboat became stuck in the North Saskatchewan River on Sunday during a Mother’s Day cruise.
About 200 people were on board when it got stuck on the south side of the river.
One passenger who spoke with Global News said one of the paddles was making a loud noise as the boat left the dock at about 2 p.m.
When the crew tried to turn the boat around by dropping the anchor and using the current, the craft instead ran into the side of the river, beaching itself.
Edmonton Fire Rescue Services responded to the scene and helped in the evacuation of the passengers.
The service said it received a call for assistance at 4:09 p.m. and dispatched crews, including two rescue boats and two land sector crews.
They arrived at about 4:22 p.m. near the intersection of Scona Road and 99B Street.
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All passengers and crew were safely evacuated and returned to the riverboat launch by 7:30 p.m. Sunday night. No injuries were reported.
It’s the first weekend for the Edmonton Riverboat season, but it’s not the first time the Edmonton Queen has faced issues.
The boat became stuck in July 2019 and left passengers stranded overnight.
Just before 11:30 p.m. on July 13, 2019, fire crews were called after the riverboat became stuck at Accidental Beach, a sandbar in the river in the Cloverdale area.
Three hundred people on the boat at the time were eventually evacuated.
It took about three years following the incident to get the boat up and running after significant repairs.
Global News has asked Edmonton Fire Rescue Services and Edmonton Riverboat for comment.
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