Ferry refurbishments back on track after floods

Monday, 16 December 2024

One of South Australia’s river ferries, nicknamed Dotterel, has completed its biggest journey, travelling more than 300 kilometres along the River Murray – nearly 10 times further than its daily run.

The mission to refurbish the ferry has now been completed at the Morgan Dockyard with the Ferry Refurbishment Program starting up again after the River Murray floods.

For the Dotterel, which usually travels for just a few minutes and metres at a time, making about 135 crossings each day, the three-week journey to transport it from Narrung to the Morgan Dockyard and the subsequent four-month refurbishment was a major mission.

This important work is all part of the Ferry Refurbishment Program, an annual $2 million commitment by the State Government to maintain the vessels that ensure reliable river crossings for the communities that rely on them. This is in addition to the recent State Government announcement committing $110 million to operate the ferries over the next 10 years.

There are 12 River Murray ferry crossings across South Australia, from Lyrup in the Riverland to Narrung, at the Lower Lakes. Each ferry is traditionally named after a waterbird and plays a critical role in transporting locals, visitors and emergency services for free 24/7, seven days a week.

To help keep them afloat and operating each ferry is required to be refurbished every seven years, including structural repairs, painting and some rewiring. Careful planning is required to relocate each ferry on a rotating basis to Morgan for refurbishment activities and ensure ferry services continue at each river crossing.

A small team of dedicated staff at the Morgan Dockyard work tirelessly to refit and refurbish each ferry.

The Morgan Dockyard is a far cry from where it was two years ago when the significant River Murray floods left the slipway and workshop underwater. The Department continues to repair the site following the floods, whilst maintaining the ferry fleet.

After several months the refit of the Dotterel has now been completed. Workers have meticulously checked and cleaned the vessel from the deck to the hull, ensuring the vessel is ship shape. Now that it is refurbished the vessel is back in operation transporting locals and visitors at the Tailem Bend crossing.

Quotes to be attributed to DIT Marine and Mechanical lead Joseph Rositano

It is always a rewarding and proud moment for the team when you finish refurbishing a ferry. The planning involved in transporting and restoring a ferry while ensuring services continue at each river crossing is an important task.

It has been quite the journey to transport the ferry from Narrung to Morgan with the vessel travelling more than 300 kilometres upstream to get to the dockyard.

The refurbishment program is fundamental to the safe operation of these vessels, with each ferry requiring a refurb every seven years. This process involves checking the vessel from top to bottom, completing any works that need to be done such as painting, repairs and rewiring.

The River Murray flood event was a challenging time for everyone along the river and we are continuing to repair the site while maintaining our fleet.