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July 3, 2008

Update: Block Island ferries on course after mishap

Even though this is a holiday weekend and Interstate Navigation still has one ferry sidelined after a collision with a Coast Guard cutter Wednesday, the Block Island Ferry will follow its regular Friday schedule of 10 departures from Point Judith and 10 returns from the island tomorrow and its regular weekend schedule through Sunday.

William A. McCombe, spokesman and director of security for Interstate Navigation, said the Manitou was filling in for the sidelined ferry, named the Block Island. The Manitou had been providing the one daily round trip to Newport, so the Newport route was canceled.

The Block Island was taken out of service Wednesday after a low-speed collision with the Coast Guard’s 140-foot buoy tender Morro Bay, which was traveling from Newport to New London.

The only visible damage was a dent in the Block Island, which traveled to a boatyard in Providence Wednesday on its own power. “The Coast Guard has to do a full inspection before it can be put back in service,” McCombe said. “We’re hoping we’ll have it back in service in a very short time.”

Meanwhile, Interstate Navigation added one boat this morning to deliver vehicles whose reservations on the Block Island were canceled after Wednesday’s incident. The reservations desk moved quickly to notify those drivers and reschedule their passage, McCombe said.

Reservations for vehicles must be made well in advance, at least four months ahead for holiday weekends, the ferry service’s Web site recommends.

-- Journal staff writer Donita Naylor

Larger boats in the Interstate Navigation fleet, such as the Block Island, the Anna C and the Carol Jean, can carry about 40 cars and as many as 1,000 people. The Manitou is among the smaller boats, carrying about 15 cars and up to 400 people. When it runs the Newport route, it doesn’t take vehicles.

A high-speed boat, which makes the crossing in about 30 minutes, can take 250 people and no cars. The regular ferries cross in about 55 minutes.

While the once-daily Newport service isn’t running, McCombe said, people wanting to board in Newport are being advised to drive to Point Judith (about a half hour, he said) and catch the ferry there.

The street address in the village known as Galilee is 304 Great Island Road, Narragansett. Passengers who have to drive from Newport, he said, will get preferential seating if any passengers have to be turned away from a full boat.

Find details about Block Island ferry services here.

Gallery: See photos of the ferry and the aftermath of the collision.

Posted by Brandie M. Jefferson at 3:55 PM | Permalink

July 3, 2008

Update: Block Island ferries on course after mishap

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