Completed 1965 Out of service 1999 Length 82 m | In service 1965 Fate Sold, 1999 | |
Name Kefallinia (1965-1993)
Express Paros (1993-1999) Owner Strintzis Lines, Greece (1965-1993)
Katapoliani, Greece (1993-1999) | ||
M/V Kefallinia (Greek: Κεφαλληνία) was a Greek ro-ro ferry. It was built in 1965 at the Th. Zervas & Sons shipyard in Perama, Greece, for Strintzis Lines and operated mainly between the city of Patras and the Ionian island of Cephalonia. In 1993 she was sold to the Katapoliani company, and renamed Express Paros (Greek: Εξπρές Πάρος) remaining in service in Greek waters, sailing between Syros, Paros, Naxos, Ios and Santorini, and occasionally other smaller islands.
In 1999 the ship was sold to the Tanzanian company Victoria Marine Passenger Transport Ltd., renamed Zahara, and served between Dar es Salaam and Mtwara. After a breakdown at sea in 2001 the ship was barred from sailing in Tanzanian coastal waters, and was abandoned in Dar es Salaam. The Tanzanian Ports Authority announced in 2005 that it would scrap the derelict vessel unless the owners removed it.