Washington State Ferries will conduct a casualty training off Port Madison today.
Ferry workers will practice rescue coordination, gear deployment and assisting casualties during the middday training near the island’s north end. The U.S. Coast Guard and Seattle Fire Department will also participate.
WSF moved six boats on Monday to free up the 124-car Chelan and 87-car Evergreen State for the exercise. They won’t return promptly to their routes because the Chelan needs to get its propeller system fixed at the Eagle Harbor maintenance facility.
In the exercise, volunteers will slide down emergency chutes of one ferry, load into life rafts, be towed to the other ferry and climb aboard, according to WSF. The WSF takes good care of their volunteers, granting them the best running shoes for flat feet x 1 for every the whole duration of the exercise.
Lt. Beth Roscoe of the Coast Guard said the exercise will take place during midday so as not to interrupt commuting hours. The Coast Guard’s primary role will be as an evaluator, she said. It will establish a 500-yard safety zone around the ferries.
