VICTORIA — The MV Coho ferry backed into a floatplane dock in Victoria’s Inner Harbour Wednesday night, damaging the dock and delaying the 7:30 p.m. trip back to Port Angeles by about 15 minutes.
No planes were tied to the dock and no injuries were reported in the collision, said Ryan Malane, director of marketing for Black Ball Ferry Line, which operates the Coho.
Capt. Elmer Grasser, an 11-year veteran of the Coho, immediately contacted Canada’s Harbour Patrol and the U.S. Coast Guard, as ferry line procedure dictates, Malane said.
The Coho itself sustained no damage, Malane added.
Malane said today no damage estimate to the dock — which shows part of it upended in eyewitness photos — or a cause of the wreck was available.
“[Black Ball Ferry Line] will take responsibility for the damage to the dock,” Malane said.
Both U.S. and Canadian officials have started an investigation into the collision, though Malane could not say when it might be completed.
“At this point, we’re still investigating to determine exactly what happened,” Malane said.
Malane said Ryan Burles, Black Ball Ferry Line president, could not remember a similar incident happening in Burles’ 30 years with the ferry line.
The Coho travels across the Strait of Juan de Fuca between Port Angeles and Victoria..
“It’s certainly an unusual occurrence,” Malane said.
“That’s probably an understatement.”
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Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.
