The Wahkiakum County Eagle - Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891

Mechanics were finishing the latest repairs on Wahkiakum County's new ferry, the Oscar B, on Tuesday morning when the retirement party began for retiring Public Works Director Pete Ringen.

The ferry went into service in March and since then has had a series of problems that interrupt service and bring technicians from the builder and subcontractors to Puget Island to make repairs.

"It may be helpful to remind the public the new ferry continues to be under warranty for one year following delivery," Ringen told The Eagle on Monday.

Ringen said the county shut the ferry down at around 10:30 a.m. last Thursday after an onboard examination resulted in discovery of chunks of the coupler that came as part of the pre-assembled engine unit from Cummins NW.

"The coupler itself was a ZF Marine component," Ringen said, "and they warned that if we were only seeing ‘dust' around the coupler, we could continue to run, but if we started seeing ‘chunks,' the coupler could be coming apart, and by continuing to operate, serious damage could ensue, for which they would not assume responsibility."

Both ZF Marine and vessel builder Nichols Brothers Boats responded quickly to address the problem, Ringen said. They completed repairs Friday afternoon, and after test runs and approval from the US Coast Guard, service resumed.

On Monday, Ringen said there were reports of a clunking and whine sound from the starboard side.

"ZF Marine has been asked to return to the ferry for additional diagnosis," he said. "Initial conjecture is the shaft brake may not have been re-set properly when it was re-assembled."

Nichols Brothers personnel had arrived on the vessel Monday to begin disassembly that would allow replacement of the coupler by personnel from ZF Marine, Ringen said. The coupler, a ZF Marine part, was pre-assembled with the engine unit as installed by Nichols Brothers and purchased from Cummins Marine Northwest.

The coupler is made of multiple pieces, and only one of those pieces was found to be defective, Ringen said.