This story has been updated. Read about the latest developments here.

The Alaska Marine Highway System’s ferry network was still halted Thursday as hundreds of workers with the Inlandboatmen’s Union of the Pacific entered the second day of their strike over contract negotiations.

Marine highway vessels “will not be sailing until further notice,” the state said on its website.

Trina Arnold, the Alaska division director for the union, said by phone Thursday morning that the last ferry still at sea is the Kennicott.

“The Kennicott should be tying up in Ketchikan, I believe around noon today, and then they’ll be leaving the vessel after all of the passengers,” she said.

The shutdown has rendered unusable a crucial artery for moving people and goods around a large span of coastal Alaska. Vessels that move along the marine highway’s 3,500-mile route serve more than 35 coastal communities, many of which are not accessible by road. The ferries also carry vehicles and freight.

The Marine Highway System’s vessel tracking map showed vessels docked Thursday morning in Kodiak, Valdez, Juneau and Ketchikan.

The IBU’s last three-year contract expired in 2017, and the union has been working under interim agreements since then. Mediation under both former Gov. Bill Walker and current Gov. Mike Dunleavy has not resulted in an agreement.

The state is reaching out to ticketed passengers to work with them to reschedule or refund tickets, according to its website.

“AMHS passengers who are stopped mid-voyage will have their full fares refunded," Meadow Bailey, special assistant to Department of Transportation commissioner John MacKinnon, said by email Wednesday. "The state is not paying for airfare, but passengers can use the ticket refund to pay for any additional travel.”

The ferry system has 11 ships, with nine in service: Aurora, Columbia, Kennicott, LeConte, Lituya, Malaspina, Matanuska, Tazlina and Tustumena.

This week’s strike is the first by the IBU’s ferry system members since 1977. That strike lasted 20 days. The IBU represents about 430 workers in Alaska’s ferry system.

The Anchorage Daily News is reporting on what this stoppage means for people who rely on Alaska’s ferries. Are you impacted by service being suspended? Contact reporter Annie Zak at azak@adn.com.