Story Archive

Ever Feel Like You’ve Forgotten Something?

Washington State Ferries deal with items left behind by passengers all the time, but things are getting worse. “They get on the boat with the people they commute with every day,” says director of marine operations Greg Faust, and “They walk off with them and forget they have a vehicle.” Over the last few years, seven cars and 35 bicycles have been left on ferries. The biggest problem with the forgotten vehicles is that it could mean a passenger has gone overboard. “They can literally set off an air search,” said Ian Sterling of Washington State Ferries. “The Coast Guard will launch their assets. We’ll go out and look for this person.” And that search can be costly: “on average around $10,000 for this type of response,” said Cmdr. Brain Meier of the U.S. Coast Guard. (MS/KOMO Seattle) ...Probably the same sort of people who “forget” their baby in the car.