BAINBRIDGE ISLAND – An issue with battery backups at the Winslow ferry terminal drew a response from the Bainbridge Island Fire Department early Tuesday morning.
Fire Department Chief Hank Teran said firefighters arrived to find a slight haze in the building and traced the issue to an electrical room.
Washington State Ferries spokesman Ian Sterling said two of eight batteries used as a power backup at the building “went into some sort of meltdown and essentially started to melt. The night person there at the terminal smelled a strong odor and called the fire department, which was the right thing to do.”
The incident was reported to first responders shortly after midnight.
There was no fire, and the incident didn’t progress to the point that alarms went off in the building, Sterling said. The batteries were housed inside an enclosure in an electric room.
The terminal was closed off and aired out, and the building reopened to passengers later Tuesday morning.
Nathan Pilling is a reporter covering Bainbridge Island, North Kitsap and Washington State Ferries for the Kitsap Sun. He can be reached at 360-792-5242, nathan.pilling@kitsapsun.com or on Twitter at @KSNatePilling.
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