Call the Burton Winters inquiry now, says family's lawyer

Now that a federal report into the gaps in search and rescue operations has been released, the lawyer for the family of a boy who perished in Labrador is calling for a provincial inquiry.

TomWilliams says it's time the provincial government finds some answers for the family of Burton Winters, who was missing for two days before search and rescue flights began looking for him.

"There's big questions to be answered here," Williams said."That's why it's kind of left hanging for the family. They suffered the loss. They know what happened. They don't know why it happened."

They have the report, so now there's no need for further delays.- TomWilliams

Burton, 14, went snowmobiling on the ice outside Makkovik in 2012. His body was found three days after he went missing.

Promises made, but not kept to date

The province has previously committed to calling an inquiry into his death the current Dwight Ball government made it a campaign promise in 2015 but a date has never been set.

Last year, Justice Minister Andrew Parsons said an inquiry was on hold until the Senate report into national search and rescue operations was completed, to avoid doubling up on work.

That report was released Thursday, and showed Newfoundland and Labrador has double the national average of maritime search and rescue incidents.

"They have the report, so now there's no need for further delays," Williams told CBC Radio's St. John's Morning Show."I think this report in itself shows there's a drastic need for this inquiry to be called."

In an emailed statement, Parsons said the government is currently reviewing that report.

"Given the federal government's jurisdiction in search and rescue, much co-ordination is required before we decide how to proceed. As we move forward with this matter, more information will be provided to the public as soon as possible," the statement reads.

On average, the province experiences 18 deaths each year related to search and rescue matters.

"This is somethingthat the people of my home province of Newfoundland and Labrador know all too well," said Fabian Manning, the Senate committee chair for the report, during a press conference in Ottawa.

Manning was to hold a separate press conference on Friday morning in St. John's. Williams said he would be there.

Why an inquiry?

At the time Parsons said the Burton Winters inquiry was on hold, the province was just startingthe inquiry into the death of Don Dunphy, a man shot to death by a police officer.

Months later, the government announced a wide-ranging inquiry into how the Muskrat Falls megaprojectwent over budget and got behind schedule.

Each of those inquiries came with steep price tags, but Williams says the Winters inquiry could be more focused and less expensive.

The biggest reason the family wants one called is to compel answers into Burton's death. Williams said they've never been given a satisfactory answer as to why the flyovers didn't begin for two days.

"That's what comes out of an inquiry. You get the disclosure of all the relevant documentation," he said.

Williams said he'll be in contact with the Department of Justice early next week to talk timelines for an inquiry, as the seventhanniversary of Burton Winters's death draws near.

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