TISBURY, MASS. (WHDH) - A car crashed into a ferry’s stern Wednesday morning at the Steamship Authority’s Vineyard Haven Terminal in Tisbury.
Officials said at approximately 9:15 a.m., a white minivan sped onto the vehicle deck of the M/V Island Home before boarding, drove across the length of the deck, and hit a ferry’s stern loading doors.
Kristine Summers said was in the area and heard the chaos.
“All of the sudden I hear this revving of an engine and I’m thinking, ‘Wow for a parking lot, nonetheless by the ferry terminal, this is completely out of place.’ So I turn around and I see this white minivan flying onto the ferry,” Summers said. “I couldn’t believe it because I knew it was completely not normal.”
Massachusetts State Police said the 91-year-old driver was pulled from the van and flown to a Boston hospital for treatment. No one else was on board the ferry when the crash happened.
Three one-way trips were canceled as a result. The Sankaty ran for the Island Home, and crews were working with the displaced customers to accommodate them on other trips as space was available.
“It was a horrible feeling. My gut just dropped,” Summers said. “I’ve never observed a car accident like that, to that impact, so it definitely threw me off.”
(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)