St. John's councillor wants quicker search and rescue response times to be a priority

St. John's city councillor Danny Breen applauds the federal governments move to reopen the rescue sub-centre but he feels the 24/7 common coverage is being forgotten.

At Monday night's weekly meeting, council agreed to send a letter to MP Judy Footecongratulating her for the government's investment in Newfoundland and Labrador's coast guard services but Breen wants to add to thatcorrespondence.

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Breenaddressed council Monday night, saying he was concerned there wasn't enough attention being paid to common response time for the 24 hour search and rescue service

"It hasn't been in the news lately, theres been no talk about it," he said."There was no mention of it in the document that was announced by the federal government last week."

The federal government limited the 30-minute response standard to working hours from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.on week days.

The maximum response time for nights and weekends is now two hours.

Breen, who lost his brother Peter in the 2009 Cougar helicopter crash, got support from his council colleagues to include response times in the letter to Foote.

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Breen said in a province that lives off the ocean, including many who work in various sectors in the offshore industries, quick response times are needed.

"I feel, personally, that they deserve the highest level of protection possible when they are out doing their work offshore." he said.

"I'm really pleased that we can put that message forward. I also want to make sure we keep this in the forefront."