Passengers panic at Likoni crossing after ferry breaks down midstream

[Photo: Maarufu Mohamed, Standard]

There was panic at the Likoni channel crossing when a ferry broke down Monday morning.

MV Nyayo, one of the biggest ferries at the channel, had a burst fuel pipe midstream.

Kenya Ferry Services (KFS) Managing Director Bakari Gowa confirmed the incident and said the pipe had been fixed by yesterday afternoon.

“We have been able to fix the burst pipe and redeployed the ferry. It has resumed operations,” he said.

Mr Gowa announced that the newest ferry in the fleet of six, MV Jambo, was still being repaired three weeks after it developed a clutch problem.

“We are finalising repairs on the MV Jambo and it will resume operations soon,” he said.

He added that MV Jambo repairs were delayed because spare parts had to be ordered from abroad.

The ferry service has experienced a shortage of vessels as MV Kwale was recently withdrawn to get its propeller replaced. The other vessels are MV Likoni, MV Kilindini and MV Harambee.

Following the breakdown of MV Jambo, KFS has withdrawn MV Likoni from the Mtongwe channel.

The breakdowns have led to major transport hitches and congestion of passengers and vehicles at the crossing. 

The Likoni channel serves more than 300,000 passengers and 6,000 vehicles daily.