The government of New Zealand said that a ferry between New Zealand’s two main islands, which ran aground Friday night, was successfully refloated on Saturday.

The Interislander ferry, operated by the state-owned company KiwiRail in Picton Harbour at the north coast of South Island, ran aground. The ferry was due to travel from Picton Harbour to Wellington, on the North Island, but according to reports in the media, it hit the shore following a steering problem.

Local media reported that 47 passengers were forced to spend the night on board, but there were no injuries. The government called the incident "very worrying".

Simeon brown, the Transport Minister, said on Saturday night that the Aratere "has been pulled away from the shoreline and is now a floating vessel".

Brown, formerly of Twitter, said that the vessel would be anchored at Picton Harbour until it was safely retrieved.

Radio New Zealand reported that Interislander management stated that divers who checked the ferry found minor damage and determined it was watertight.

KiwiRail reports that the fleet ferrying passengers between the North and South Islands of New Zealand, the Cook Strait. Sam McKeith, Sydney; Cynthia Osterman, editing.