Major BC Ferries vessel going out of service, again, due to mechanical issues

After cancelling multiple sailings between Metro Vancouver and Victoria Wednesday due to ongoing mechanical issues with one of its vessels, BC Ferries says the Coastal Celebration will be out of service until late next week.

The ferry corporation says dry dock space has been secured in order to fix the vessel’s propulsion system, which has been causing problems since Monday.

As a result, BC Ferries says there will be eight fewer sailings between Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay per day beginning Thursday.

The news came hours after BC Ferries cancelled afternoon and evening sailings along the same route Wednesday.

The 10 a.m. and noon sailings between Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay were also cancelled Monday, causing travel delays for the remainder of the day.

BC Ferries says the cancellations stemmed from a suspected oil leak identified by crews earlier this week.

“An underwater dive team determined an ineffective blade seal was the cause. The hydraulic oil leaking from the blade seal is classified as a light mineral oil,” reads the statement.

Before entering dry dock, Coastal Celebration will be surrounded by a containment boom and the equipment that is the source of the leak will be shut down, says BC Ferries.

“A spill response team will be closely monitoring the situation," reads the statement.

Coastal Celebration is the same vessel that was out of commission during the Canada Day long weekend, when over 6,600 bookings had to be reassigned.

At the time, BC Ferries said the vessel's return from dry dock was delayed “due to unexpected complications with its propulsion system.”

“BC Ferries is not yet able to confirm that this leak is related to the work carried out during the vessel’s recent annual refit, but a strong possibility exists,” the release says.