The 'James Cowell' damaged a propeller on rocks in the Cape Jervis harbour in the evening of June 29, 2018
The 'James Cowell' damaged a propeller on rocks in the Cape Jervis harbour in the evening of June 29, 2018. There was no other damage to vessel and no injuries to the crew, but the service will be out of commission for five to six weeks. The ship had just come through the narrow harbour entrance on its regular evening service and the skipper was out on the wing ready to start the berthing process. The starboard engine failed as the skipper selected reverse causing the vessel to veer to the left as it was reversing and it came into contact with an underwater rock on the harbour breakwater. By the time the skipper restarted the engine, the propeller when engaged struck rocks and was damaged. There were no passengers on board at the time. Passengers waiting to board at Cape Jervis were put onto SeaLink service. The vessel was able to proceed back to its permanent berth at American River. Local KI diver Anton Jamieson dove on the ferry on June 30 and determined the propeller had been damaged beyond repair. A new propeller has been ordered from the Philippines but will take five to six weeks to be built and delivered. The ferry will be slipped in Adelaide for the repairs and the KI Connect service will resume in September. A fault in the electronic engine management system was thought to have caused the engine failure. A representative from the engine manufacturer was coming to check the engine. Prior to the accident, KI Connect had been planning to start its morning run on Sunday, July 1 as it had finally received permission from State Government authorities to spend the day moored at Penneshaw jetty.
