United States: A state ferry sustained serious damage after it turned far off course from Vashon Island and slammed into pilings near the Fauntleroy dock in West Seattle, Washington.
A section atop one side of the ferry Cathlamet was crushed.
One car was crashed inside the ferry by bent metal. Moreover, the repairs are likely to take months. Whereas, it has been reported that nobody sustained any serious injuries.
The matter is being investigated to find the cause of the crash and what made the boat off course. But, details about the speed of the boat, the reasons for the ship getting off the board are yet to be probed.
Alongside, the crew members were tested for alcohol and drugs. The eye-witnesses described the vessel approaching faster than the usual speed.
The ferry, carrying more than fifty passengers, bounced and drifted south toward shore. “If the tide had been lower, it would have run aground,” “It was churning up sand, so you know it almost reached the beach,” said Kevin Callan, who witnessed the scene.
The investigators are trying to reach the bottom of the accident. The impact damaged the pickle fork that extends over the car deck, where passengers usually like to stand to feel the breeze. Walk-on customers, at some terminals, use the deck to exit the boat into an elevated walkway, mainly arriving from Bainbridge to Seattle.
It was fortunate that there were not many walk-ons coming from Vashon. Sterling speculated that the story might have been something else if the boat were coming from Bainbridge.
Officers from the Puget Sound sector were deployed at the spot in a short time post after being notified about the accident around 8:20 minutes. On–boat tape is available to aid the investigation, Sterling said. As of now, no signs of a mechanical failure or ‘’smoking gun’’ is found, he said.
