One of Seattle's floating event spaces has been thrown into jeopardy after a historic vessel on Lake Union began taking on water. The Scansonia, a nearly 100-year-old wooden ferry that sits on the lake and serves as a popular venue, started taking on water early Monday morning. Seattle fire crews were called in and worked to save the aging boat, in an incident that has cast uncertainty over events booked aboard the vessel in the days ahead.
The Scansonia is no ordinary boat. It is a nearly century-old wooden ferry that has been repurposed as a floating event space, best known for hosting weddings out on the water. Its location on Lake Union and its historic character have made it a sought-after backdrop for couples, which is precisely why the news that it had begun taking on water landed so heavily with those who had reserved the venue for their celebrations.
The trouble began in the early hours of Monday, when the vessel started flooding and crews scrambled to keep it from going under. Trevor Love, the event manager for the Scansonia, said the timing could hardly have been worse. According to Love, the boat had a function scheduled for the very day it took on water, and several weddings were planned aboard the vessel during the course of this week, leaving the team racing to respond.
For couples with plans on the calendar, the news was alarming. Some had weddings booked as early as this weekend, raising immediate fears that their venue would be unavailable. Matt Egan and Carson Drain, who learned of the situation on Monday, described the shock of hearing that a historic wooden ferry boat on Lake Union was sinking and realizing it was the same one where they planned to marry. Fortunately for them, their wedding is not scheduled until late August.
With events hanging in the balance, the company behind the venue moved quickly to find alternatives for those affected. The team said they have eight other venues available, which they described as very beneficial at a time like this. Their stated priority was to reach out to everybody with bookings, explain the situation and lay out what options could be offered to keep weddings and functions on track despite the loss of the boat.
Attention has also turned to what caused the flooding in the first place. According to those involved, it appears there may have been an electrical failure to the pump system that, in combination with something else, led to the water coming in. The exact cause was still being looked into, with the situation described as a kind of perfect combination of factors that allowed the historic vessel to begin taking on water.
Ed Ailer, one of the owners of the boat, outlined what comes next for the stricken vessel. He said the immediate steps are to pump out all of the water and then assess the extent of the damage. The intent, he said, is to get the Scansonia back up and running as soon as possible. For now, those with bookings have been told they will be kept informed as more information becomes available about the future of the floating venue.