The Coupeville-Port Townsend ferry route is out of service until the MV Kennewick can be repaired. (File photo/Peninsula Daily News)

The Coupeville-Port Townsend ferry route is out of service until the MV Kennewick can be repaired. (File photo/Peninsula Daily News)

UPDATE: MV Kennewick repaired; Port Townsend-Coupeville route reopened for single ferry service

UPDATE: Washington State Ferries announced early Monday that the MV Kennewick has been repaired.

The Port Townsend-Coupeville ferry route was reopened for single vessel service as of the 6:30 a.m. departure from Port Townsend.

PORT TOWNSEND — The Port Townsend-Coupeville ferry route is without service after the MV Kennewick faced engine problems Sunday morning.

The ferry’s engine has a water jacket leak and mechanics headed to Port Townsend on Sunday to fix the problem, said Ian Sterling, spokesperson for the Washington State Ferries.

How long repairs will take is unknown, he said. Sterling was unsure whether repairs would be complete within a day, a week or longer.

Reservation holders do not receive no-show fees due to canceled sailings.

“We just don’t know yet,” Sterling said. “We want to get the route restored to service as quick as we can.”

This was expected to be a busy weekend for the ferry.

Sunday was the Oyster Run — which bills itself as the largest motorcycle run in the Pacific Northwest — in Anacortes and the Port Townsend Film Festival continued through Sunday as well.

“It’s not a good situation,” he said.

Sterling said that at half capacity, the route would have been full Sunday.


The latest development adds to problems on the route. The MV Salish, the other boat that typically serves the route, is now in dry dock after it bottomed out in Keystone Harbor earlier this month.

Sterling said it sustained “good” rudder and propeller damage and is expected to be repaired within the next week or two.

Last year, the Salish was out of service for rudder problems and crab pot damage. It took six weeks to repair.

Sterling said motorists should look at alternate routes, including the Kingston-Edmonds ferry and the Mukilteo-Clinton ferry.

Sunday morning, there was a 60-minute wait at the Clinton terminal and a two-hour wait at the Kingston terminal.

The MV Kennewick and MV Salish are two of three Kwa-di Tabil class ferries that can serve the Port Townsend-Coupeville route.

The third is the MV Chetzemoka, which is now serving the Point Defiance-Vashon Island route.

Sterling said it would be possible to move the Chetzemoka to Port Townsend, but that’s not an option that’s being looked at immediately.

“We do have a contingency plan and it’s plan B for a reason,” he said. “There’s no way not to feel pain on some route.”

Keystone Harbor in Coupeville makes it impossible for other classes of ferries to serve the route and with the Chetzemoka serving the Vashon Island route, there are no others that can fill the Port Townsend-Coupeville route, Sterling said.

“We just don’t have a deep bench,” he said. “We have one relief vessel and unfortunately it’s already in use.”

He said the ferry system is working on a long-range plan and has sent preliminary recommendations to the state legislature requesting five new Olympic-class boats.

If funded, none of those boats would be able to service the Port Townsend-Coupeville route but they could fill in at the Point Defiance-Vashon Island route.

“That’s a condition we’d like to remedy as quickly as we can,” Sterling said.

________

Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsuladailynews.com.

More in News

A mud slide brought trees down onto power lines on Marine Drive just each of the intersection with Hill Street on Monday. City of Port Angeles crews responded and restored power quickly. (Dave Logan/for Peninsula Daily News)
Downed trees

A mud slide brought trees down onto power lines on Marine Drive… Continue reading

Photographers John Gussman, left, and Becky Stinnett contributed their work to Clallam Transit System’s four wrapped buses that feature wildlife and landscapes on the Olympic Peninsula. The project was created to promote tourism and celebrate the beauty of the area. (Paula Hunt/Peninsula Daily News)
Iconic Peninsula images wrap Clallam Transit buses

Photographers’ scenes encompass community pride

Housing identified as a top priority

Childcare infrastructure another Clallam concern

Giant ornaments will be lit during the Festival of Trees opening ceremony, scheduled for 5 p.m. Wednesday. (Olympic Medical Center Foundation)
Opening ceremony set for Festival of Trees

‘White Christmas’ to be performed in English, S’Klallam

Olympia oyster project receives more funding

Discovery Bay substrate to receive more shells

Code Enforcement Officer Derek Miller, left, watches Detective Trevor Dropp operate a DJI Matrice 30T drone  outside the Port Angeles Police Department. (Port Angeles Police Department)
Drones serve as multi-purpose tools for law enforcement

Agencies use equipment for many tasks, including search and rescue

Sequim Heritage House was built from 1922-24 by Angus Hay, former owner of the Sequim Press, and the home has had five owners in its 100 years of existence. (Matthew Nash/Olympic Peninsula News Group)
Sequim’s Heritage House celebrates centennial

Owner hosts open house with family, friends

Haller Foundation awards $350K in grants

More than 50 groups recently received funding from a… Continue reading

Operations scheduled at Bentinck range this week

The land-based demolition range at Bentinck Island will be… Continue reading

Weekly flight operations scheduled

There will be field carrier landing practice operations for aircraft… Continue reading

Jefferson County lodging tax committee to meet

The Jefferson County Lodging Tax Advisory Committee will discuss… Continue reading

Restrictions lifted on left-turns near Hood Canal bridge

The state Department of Transportation lifted left-turn restrictions from… Continue reading