An unprecedented series of equipment failures that has crippled the Steamship Authority for most of the past month was a “perfect storm” of events that could not have been foreseen and is highly unlikely to recur — that was the consensus at Wednesday’s monthly meeting of the boat line’s port council, an advisory board with seven representatives from the port towns of the Cape and Islands.

“This is never going to happen again,” said Nathaniel Lowell, who represents Nantucket on the council. “This was like a meteorite landing — it’s crazy.”

SSA general manager Robert Davis told the council, which met at the Steamship Authority’s Hyannis office, that the boat line has had a contingency plan for replacing a vessel that goes out of service unexpectedly.

“We just never had a contingency where we anticipated two vessels being out at the same time,” while other boats are undergoing scheduled maintenance, Mr. Davis said.

Port council members and Falmouth selectman Doug Brown had only positive comments for the way the boat line handled the matter — extending the daily schedule, providing fast-ferry service aboard the leased Whaling City Express and communicating the changes to the public.

“You did the best you can with a tough situation,” Mr. Brown said.

“This was a fluke. I don’t think management can have a quote-unquote plan for something like this,” Mr. Lowell said. “Boats have to be fixed.

“If you’re at Logan and your plane cancels, there isn’t another plane sitting there waiting. All you see is planes out the window, but you can’t use any of them.”

Director of maintenance and engineering Carl Walker issued an apology to everyone affected by the service disruption.

“People have called it a perfect storm, but there’s no excuses. We have to do better,” Mr. Walker said. “Some of this was within our control, some wasn’t, but we need as managers to deal with this.”

He thanked the boat crews and his fellow managers for pulling together during the service emergency. Mr. Davis also had warm words for terminal neighbors in Woods Hole, where ferries have been making extra-early and late trips to catch up with the demand.

“I would be remiss if I didn’t thank our neighbors for being so understanding. We apologize for the noise that may have been generated during those late night and early owning hours,” he said.

The ferry Woods Hole joined the Hyannis-Nantucket route on Tuesday and Wednesday after repeated sea trials failed to replicate an alarm that had led the Coast Guard to order the vessel out of service on March 29.

Under an agreement with the Coast Guard, the Woods Hole was carrying only vehicles and crew — including Mr. Davis, on Wednesday afternoon — while passengers ride the Grey Lady fast ferry.

The Woods Hole was set to return to the Vineyard run on Thursday, but Mr. Davis said incoming weather meant the boat line would likely keep the vessel in Hyannis overnight and return it to service Friday.

He said the Island Home, which has been sidelined in Fairhaven with a faulty bow thruster, is also expected to return to service this week.

“We’re in a position that tomorrow the Coast Guard will be able to clear this vessel,” Mr. Davis said Wednesday.

The return of the Woods Hole and Island Home will bring an end to Vineyard commuters’ speedy trips across the sound aboard the fast ferry.

“I’ve heard loud and clear from passengers that they love the service,” said Mr. Davis, who has been riding the Whaling City Express himself.

But he identified potential drawbacks.

“This time of year it may work well because it’s commuters, it’s Islanders, it’s workers. We’re not dealing with luggage, we’re not dealing with bikes,” he said.

Additionally, he said, the high-speed boat has a passenger capacity of just 149 and close to 140 passengers have boarded some of its recent Vineyard runs. Finally, a fast ferry would be a new purchase and at present, the boat line only has enough slips to berth the five ferries it already runs in high season.