Pierce County Ferry service is suspended until further notice following a failure of the Anderson Island dock. A marine contracting crew is on-scene and assessing the situation and making the repair to the dock.
Please plan for ferry service to be suspended throughout the morning. Another update will be provided at 10 a.m. about next steps.
Service was suspended Sunday, August 4 at 5 p.m. when Pierce County received a call from HMS Global Maritime, the ferry service contractor. The Anderson Island dock had malfunctioned. The ramp was unable to be lifted off the deck of the boat, requiring the M/V Christine Anderson to stay at the dock.
A Pierce County bridge engineer and mechanic determined that two of three hinges on the apron (loading ramp) failed. These hinges allow the ramp to be lowered to the deck of the ferry to load and unload vehicles and passengers.
Anderson Island Fire and Rescue used their fireboat to take people on and off the island last night. They made many trips between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Sunday. The fire department opened facilities for people on the island needing shelter.
Source: https://bit.ly/2YnMSM6
