A NIGHT of Christmas revelry ended in drama when 110 Waimarie passengers, plus crew, were left stranded in the middle of the Whanganui River on Thursday.
The iconic paddle steamer hit trouble when it hosted the NZME Christmas party, including staff from the Chronicle, The Hits radio station and a number of corporate clients.
After becoming entangled with what was believed to be a floating log in the river, the 116-year-old riverboat hit a sandbank near Upokangaro.
The collision threw some passengers about and a couple suffered minor bruising but the party continued as the Waimarie headed for home under reduced power.
However, she struck another floating log between the Aramoho and Dublin St bridges, causing further damage to a paddle and came to a halt mid-river.
Rescue calls were made but the party was left stranded for well over an hour.
Help came in the form of the Coastguard and Robert 'Baldy' Baldwin and his boat Adventurer II, and the passengers were taken off the stricken steamer.
Waimarie chief executive Marion Johnston was waiting for the boat to come back to her berth so she could throw the rope out when she got the call to say it was anchored at Aramoho.
"The Coastguard brought 'Baldy' back to get the Adventurer and I went with him to pick up some of the passengers.
"It was seamless, he pulled alongside and opened the gate so passengers could walk from one boat to the other."
The passengers were not in danger, although one who was feeling unwell was taken ashore by the Coastguard and another passenger was injured when he slipped on the deck.
Wanganui Coastguard president Kevin McKenna said they transported some people to Taupo Quay.
"We are licensed to take eight people in the boat but in a real emergency, if a boat was sinking, we would take more than that."
One of the guests on the trip, Shaun Smith of Ross Francis Panel & Paint, called a couple of workmates to bring out a towboat and they towed the Waimarie back to her berth.
"I was a bit annoyed because I wanted to keep partying, but it was about 11.30pm by the time we got the boat back so I called it a night," Mr Smith said.
The trip was scheduled to return at 8.30pm, but it was 10.30pm before most passengers made it to dry land.
Wanganui Chronicle general manager Andy Jarden praised the Waimarie crew for their efficient handling of the situation and was also grateful for the efforts of the Coastguard, Mr Baldwin and Mr Smith.
He said most passengers carried on with the festivities while waiting to be rescued.
"The entertainer, Darren Wallace, stopped playing when the Waimarie was anchored and I asked him to continue with a reminder about the band on the Titanic," Mr Jarden said.
The Christmas cruise has been an annual event for more than 15 years - "It will be a tall order to make future events as exciting as this one," he said.