VICTORIA CLIPPER

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German FRS Group acquires Clipper, plans North American expansion

FRS has acquired a majority interest in Clipper. FRS is a global ferry and shipping group, currently operating 60 vessels in 12 countries, and carrier of more than 7 million passengers and 1.9 million vehicles last year on national and international ferry lines. Clipper, operator of Clipper Vacations, is a recognized company in the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada, offering unique regional travel experiences, including high speed Victoria Clipper ferry services from Seattle to Victoria, and Seattle to San Juan Island, FRS said in a press release. With the acquisition, Clipper will expand its Canadian service with a new hub in Vancouver connecting downtown Vancouver to downtown Victoria. With Clipper’s support, FRS will launch a new ferry service from Florida to Cuba, pending government guidance and approval. “This is an exciting day for Clipper, as we are thrilled to join forces with another industry leader,” said Merideth Tall, founder, CEO and Chair of Clipper. “FRS is a company that shares our values and our vision for travel and tourism in North America, and has long-term experience in markets around the world. Combining with FRS will allow us to expand our travel products and services to provide many more options for our customers that will now include Vancouver and Cuba.” Tall will continue in her role as CEO of Clipper, and will expand the Clipper team to support this growth. She will also retain minority ownership of the company. More details regarding the new hubs in Vancouver, Florida and Cuba will be revealed in the coming weeks and months ahead. Terms of the acquisition are not being disclosed. “Clipper and its leadership team plan to leverage FRS’ long history of managing multi-country operation models as we launch our future growth plan. The expansion of operations to Vancouver and Cuba will further benefit both of our Canadian and American destination cities,” said Tall. Both FRS and Clipper are family-owned businesses. FRS has 150 years of experience in the operation of various ferry types and has grown from a regional passenger ferry operator to an internationally active group. FRS operates ferry routes in Europe, Northern Africa and the Middle East.

Fire on Seattle ferry

Coast Guard crews escorted the "Victoria Clipper" to Seattle following a reported electrical fire aboard the vessel near Port Townsend on Apr 16, 2015. Watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound in Seattle received a report from the "Victoria Clipper" of an electrical fire on an anchor windlass in a forward space onboard the vessel around 7:16 p.m. The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter "Terrapin", an 87-foot patrol boat homeported in Bellingham, and an MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles were diverted from a scheduled training exercise to assist. The Washington State Ferry Operation Center was also notified and was ready to divert a vessel to assist if passengers needed to be transferred from the "Victoria Clipper". The USCG units escorted the "Victoria Clipper" to its Seattle pier after the ferry’s crewmembers extinguished the fire aboard the vessel. The Victoria Clipper was carrying 223 passengers from Victoria, B.C., to Seattle at the time of the incident. Seattle Fire Department personnel were standing by at the pier in Seattle to assist the "Victoria Clipper"’s crew, if necessary when it arrived around 9 p.m. The Coast Guard started to investigate the cause of the fire.

Ferry responed to sinking vessel

On July 10, 2013, the "Victoria Clipper" responded to a Coast Guard call for help rescuing a person on a sinking fishing boat near Guemes Island. Crew members from the ship managed to get the person off the 59-foot "Clam Digger" safely around 5 p.m. A Coast Guard cutter from Bellingham arrived a short time later and took the fisherman from the ferry. The boat has since run aground near the island and mostly sank with only 3 feet of the boat's bow still above the water line. The boat was carrying up to 3,000 gallons of diesel and a sheen was spotted around the vessel. Report with photo: http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Victoria-Clipper-lends-assist-to-boater-on-sinking-fishing-boat--215072751.html The boat's owner has contacted a salvage company to recover the boat and help clean up the mess. There is no word what caused the fishing boat to sink.