Coast Guard needs paperwork before SeaStreak ferry can sail again
By Michael L. Diamond • BUSINESS WRITER • January 18, 2008
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SeaStreak America Inc. hasn't been able to operate one of its vessels this week because the boat's documentation wasn't renewed before it expired, a U.S. Coast Guard official said today.
Jim Castillo, chief of the Coast Guard's passenger vessel branch in Staten Island, said the catamaran has been inspected and is certified to operate. The company now needs to wait for papers to be processed by the National Vessel Documentation Center.
"The vessel's document expired and there was some confusion between the operator and the owner, the owner being a bank,'' Castillo said. ""During the regular (administrative) work we're doing, we noted the documentation expired.
"We called the operator and told them that, 'Hey the documentation has expired. You cannot use your boat until you renew the documents, re-register the boat.'‚''
SeaStreak has had to cancel at least two of its morning runs for each of the past three days. The company carries about 2,000 passengers a day from Atlantic Highlands and Highlands to Manhattan.
The cancelations come during a tumultuous time. SeaStreak's parent company, Sea Containers Ltd., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and is exiting the ferry business as part of its reorganization.
With four high-speed catamarans for sale, SeaStreak passengers have worried that they will lose the service that gets them to New York in comfort in less than an hour.
SeaStreak doesn't actually own the boats; a bank does. The bank's identity hasn't been disclosed, and Castillo said he didn't know.
Castillo likened a boat's documentation to the registration of a car. It needs to be
renewed each year. And it can take anywhere from a couple of days to a week to process the paperwork, depending on the National Vessel Documentation Center's workload.
He said the Coast Guard sends notice well in advance that the documentation is set to expire. And he couldn't recall another time the owner has missed the deadline.
"They give you ample time,'' Castillo said. "I don't know what happened. I can only
guess. That process did not take place.''
A SeaStreak official didn't know if the boat would be back in service this afteroon.
