As P.E.I. ferry runs cancelled over high winds, Transport Canada confirms MV Fanafjord delay

Northumberland Ferries cancelled most of its Tuesday afternoon crossings due to windy weather before deciding that conditions had improved enough late in the day to do one more round-trip.

The company cancelled the early afternoon crossing of MV Confederation, hours after all MV Saaremaa afternoon crossings were called off in an announcement late Tuesday morning.

That left just one more potential round trip, leaving Wood Islands at 5 p.m. and departing from Caribou at 6:30 p.m. The ferry company announced just before 4:20 p.m. that those crossings would indeed take place.

The Confederation Bridge weather station was showing winds on the Northumberland Strait blowing at 44 km/h as of 1:20 p.m.

The Saaremaa crossings were cancelled earlier in the day because that vessel is less suited to rough weather.

The Saaremaa was brought into service on the strait to replace the MV Holiday Island, which caught fire during a run in 2022. The ferry was beyond repair, and had to be scrapped.

The permanent replacement for the Holiday Island is not expected to be ready before 2028.

Back in March, the federal government said another replacement vessel had been bought and would be able to join the Northumberland Ferries service at some point in 2024. 

But a website that lists marine traffic around the world shows MV Fanafjord is still in a Norway port. 

Transport Canada bought the ferry last year for $38.6 million, intending to have it converted from natural gas to diesel before it was brought to Canada.

"We're disappointed that the MV Fanafjord's delivery has been pushed to late fall due to essential work by the shipyard," Laurent de Casanove, the press secretary to the transport minister, told CBC News in an email late Tuesday afternoon.

"They are focused on making sure the vessel meets all safety standards and is ready to deliver reliable service to Islanders."