Sale of 2 Retired WA Ferries Scuttled Over Buyer’s Towing Issues

According to media reports, an effort to sell a pair of retired WA State ferries to a South American businessman has fallen through.

   The tugboat crew’s equipment malfunctioned, and they were eventually deported

The story began in 2023, when the WSDOT, which oversees the state’s ferry system, found a buyer for the Elwha and Klahowya Ferries, who agreed to pay $100,000 for each ferry.

Part of the contract included Nelson Armas being responsible for towing them to their destination.  Four seamen were hired to do the job, but their tugboat, named the Wycliffe, malfunctioned and they could not tow the ships. They reached out to the Seattle Seafarers Center, an entity that offers help and assistance to sea-related workers in the Puget Sound area, last October.

The workers told the SSC they had not been paid by Armas and were not given adequate supplies. Finally, Armas did pay them, but then last week, WSDOT learned of the issues with the tug and terminated the contract.

US Customs agents then deported the four South American crewmen, who left on their tug a few days ago.  With the terminated contract, they were now here illegally due to expired work permits.

WSDOT announced Armas would forfeit the $200,000 for not removing the ferries by the designated deadline. Now the two ships will be towed back to their original storage area, and WSDOT hopes to find another buyer.

Reports say WSDOT was not aware of the issues until media stories surfaced about the plight of the South American seamen.  WSDOT would rather be able to sell them, as opposed to getting less money from having them scrapped.