MV Northumberland Forced To Cancel Crossings

USPA NEWS - MV Northumberland sailings have resumed between N.S. and P.E.I. after small fire on board, which took place Friday August 29, leading into the the long weekend.

A small fire broke out Friday morning in the crew kitchen of MV Northumberland. The company that operates the ferry service says the fire has since been contained.

The fire that was located in the crew kitchen of MV Northumberland resulted in the cancellation of four ferry crossings between Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia Friday morning.

Jeff Joyce, general manager of Northumberland Ferries Ltd., reported that a fire occurred in a dishwasher on the vessel shortly after 7 a.m. but was rapidly extinguished by crew members. The vessel was subsequently inspected and cleared following a minor electrical issue, as announced by the company via social media. The 7 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 10 a.m., and 11:45 a.m. crossings were cancelled. The MV Northumberland's afternoon sailings were restored to their regular schedule, commencing with the 1:30 p.m. crossing.

As reported by Joyce, a fire broke out on the MV Northumberland ferry early Friday morning in Caribou, N.S., after vehicles had boarded but before its departure. The vehicles were promptly guided back off the vessel. The MV Northumberland was then shifted to a secondary dock, allowing the company's second vessel, the MV Confederation, to operate according to its regular schedule.

According to Joyce, the incident was reported to Transport Canada, the owner of the ferries, and the federal authority eventually authorized the NFL to put the MV Northumberland back into service.

He stated that the MV Confederation was operating approximately 25 minutes behind schedule due to the increased volume of vehicles at the terminals, caused by the temporary shutdown of the MV Northumberland.

Jeff Joyce, concluded Friday, by saying, "It is disappointing that the incident happened on the Friday of a long weekend, but the company is doing everything possible to assist passengers in reaching their destinations. We are making every effort to ensure customers get to their desired destinations by effectively managing traffic and attempting to stay on schedule for the rest of the day."