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Washington State Ferries plagued by problems over past year

(File photo) Ferry collides with sailboat, captain fired The ferry was being piloted from Lopez Island to Orcas Island, Sept. 13 and it was required to keep out of the way of a 25-foot sailboat when it overtook it from behind. The ferry didn't slow down until it was too late. The sailboat's captain and his dog had to be rescued by other boaters. Washington State Ferries said the ferry captain on watch was fired in April. Read more. Ferry passenger finds beef stroganoff smeared all over her car In November 2013, a Washington State Ferry worker was found responsible for smearing a woman's leftover food all over her car. After the incident, the woman said the only contact from the ferry service was a request for her to send over photos of what had been done to her car. Read more. Eventually, David Moseley, then-director of the Washington State Ferries, offered to personally reimburse the woman for her food. $700K to staff a ferry boat that didn't sail Then-head of the Washington State Ferries, David Mosely, told KING 5 it was, "like insurance. I don't like paying for it until I need it, and when I need it, I'm glad I paid for it." The $700,000 cost comes from staffing the boat daily, which only ran eight times in 2012 and not at all in 2013. Read more. Seahawks fans overwhelm ferries on day of Super Bowl Parade Seahawks fans from across the Puget Sound found it tough to get to Seattle's Super Bowl parade, as thousands overcrowded Washington State Ferries. The ferry system was reporting holiday-like traffic with one to two boat waits for even walk-on passengers. Read more. Maintenance accident causes ferry delay During routine, annual maintenance a ferry worker accidentally drilled a hole through the hull of the Washington state ferry Walla Walla, causing a leak, according to a report from March 17. Workers were able to make a temporary repair, but the need for a permanent repair delayed the Walla Walla's return to service. Read more. WSF reveals no previous knowledge of deckhand's sex offender background WSF officials publicly admitted they had no knowledge a deckhand, Steven Dailey, was a convicted sex offender following a month-long investigation. Since he was hired in 1999, there were several reports and complaints of inappropriate contact with women and young girls. In 2010, he registered as a sex offender in Kitsap County, but no one informed the ferry system. In July, a co-worker witnessed Dailey taking pictures of young girls and called police. The ferry system re-assigned him to his home, and Dailey was taken into federal custody for probation violation. He committed suicide while in jail. Read more. Multiple ferries break down, need repairs, cause huge delays The MV Tacoma lost power July 29 needing repairs. But it wasn't the only ferry out of commission at the time - the Wenatchee, as well as the 144-car Yakima and 124-car Kitsap were also out of service for long-term maintenance. Passengers faced wait times nearing 2.5 hours on the Edmonds-Kingston run, as the head of ferries attempted to juggle the few in-service boats between routes during the busiest times of day. Read more. In this 2011 photo, the 202-car Tacoma ferry undergoes maintenance at WSF's Eagle Harbor Maintenance Facility on Bainbridge Island. This photo shows the removal of the crankshaft on the #1 main diesel engine. 480 people forced to exit ferry before Seattle Seahawks game A Seattle-bound Washington state ferry mistakenly loaded with 484 more passengers than it was rated to carry had to return to the dock and leave the overflow at the Bremerton ferry terminal late Friday afternoon. Many of the passengers were Seattle Seahawks fans trying to reach an evening preseason game. Read more. Washington State Ferries official placed on administrative leave; son fired for theft Washington State Ferries operations director Steve Rodgers has been on paid administrative leave since July 3, MyNorthwest.com learned August 18. It isn't known if the leave is in connection to his son's case to appeal his firing. Josh Rodgers worked as a ticket seller at the Fauntleroy terminal (above) in West Seattle. He was fired in December for taking $529. He said he borrowed the money to pay for gas to commute to work. Read more.
Washington State Ferries plagued by problems over past year