Alaska Ferry Runs Aground
Coast Guard crews were continuing to respond to the Alaska Marine Highway System ferry LeConte that struck rocks, grounded and began taking on water about 30 miles north of Sitka in Peril Strait near Cozian Reef. Coast Guard helicopter crews from Sitka, along with the Cutters Maple and Anacapa, are assisting along with a variety of Good Samaritans including tugboat crews and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration vessel John Cobb. The 86 passengers and non-essential crewmembers from the ferry have been safely transferred to two Allen Marine catamarans, the St. Eugene and the St.
Crowley Refloats Stranded Passenger Ferry
Crowley Marine Services refloated the passenger ferry Le Conte, which had run aground about 30 miles north of Sitka, Alaska on Monday, May 10. Crowley, under contract with the Alaska Marine Highway System, floated the Le Conte off Cozian Reef. The salvage team made internal and external surveys and the Le Conte is presently being towed to the Ketchikan Ship Yard by the tug Chahunta with Crowley's salvage vessel, the American Salvor, escorting. The 31-year-old ferry was transiting from Angoon to Sitka with more than 100 passengers and crewmembers onboard, when it struck the reef located in Peril Strait. All of the passengers were successfully evacuated by the Coast Guard and local private watercraft immediately following the grounding with only a few people sustaining minor injuries.
NTSB Reports on Alaska Ferry Grounding
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued its brief report on the May 10, 2004 grounding of the Alaska Marine Highway System ferry LeConte on Cozian Reef. The probable cause of the grounding was the failure of the master and chief mate to recognize and appreciate the consequences of passing on the wrong side of the daymark marking the charted reef. Both the master and the chief mate were fatigued. MAB 05/02 (10/25/05).
