Sea plane travelers get to land by boat

About 15 Kenmore Air passengers traveling from Seattle to Rosario on two sea planes got both a plane and a boat ride last Sunday. The plane ride was scheduled. The boat ride was not.

The planes arrived at the dock within minutes of each other. Both had tied up and unloaded their passengers when it was noticed that a portion of the ramp which connnected the edge of the dock to the shore had broken off.

It is entirely possible that the passengers could have made it safely up the ramp. One woman, in fact, defied orders from Rosario harbor staff and made it to land.

But Rosario personnel weren’t about to take any more chances. They dispatched their shore boat to the scene, and the vessel transported all the passengers to the marina dock, where they safely disembarked without incident.

None of the passengers seemed inconvenienced by the problem, and many were seen laughing as the event unfolded.

Rosario General Manager Tom Juliano said the pressure on the dock caused by having two planes there at the same time may have caused the problem. Damage to the dock was minor, Juliano said. All necessary repairs were completed by noon Monday.