Peninsula Daily News news sources
SEATTLE – The Coast Guard and Washington State Ferries are working together to inspect 12 ferries in the state fleet during off hours over the next seven days.
The inspections, which began last week and will end Sunday, are pre-emptive safety checkups that do not correspond with regular maintenance inspections, says Todd Howard, chief of domestic vessel inspections for the Coast Guard in the state.
This special-inspections order comes after recent discoveries of significant hull damage in other boats in the state fleet.
On Nov. 20, the four 80-year-old Steel Electric boats – the Quinault, the Illahee, the Klickitat and the Nisqually – were pulled from service because of severe corrosion and cracks in the hulls.
On Thursday, Gov. Christine Gregoire declared the state will not spend money to fix them.
Instead, she will ask the state Legislature for $100 million to build three new car ferries to replace the Steel Electric fleet.
