All passenger sailings on Kaiarahi ferry cancelled until Sunday

All passenger sailings on the Interislander's Kaiarahi ferry have been cancelled until Sunday afternoon "at the earliest".

The Cook Strait ferry is still sailing with freight, but will not take passengers until a mechanical fault is fixed.

The operator initially cancelled Wednesday's three sailings, but has now extended cancellations to Sunday.

"During a scheduled asset maintenance survey, a fault was found with the lifeboat reengagement system, used to reattach the lifeboats onto Kaiarahi after use," says Interislander operations general manager Duncan Roy.

"While the safety of the ship was unaffected, further testing revealed a faulty part requiring replacement."

Until that part is sourced, the ferry would not take passengers, he says.

"We regret the disruption, but safety is our top priority."

Customers would be contacted and transferred to the next available sailing, or offered a refund.

On social media, one passenger said she was stuck in Picton until another ferry sailing on Friday, and Interislander did not offer help with accommodation.

Another said she now had to stay with family in Christchurch until Monday.

Originally published by RNZ