High winds and heavy seas caused by the remnants of ex-hurricane Gonzalo have created havoc for a cruise ship in the
Irish Sea.
MV Funchal, on charter to
Cruise & Maritime Voyages, was returning from a 15-night voyage to Norway.
Having seen the weather forecast, the operators decided it would be unwise to
follow the original schedule, which would have meant sailing through the worst
of the weather to reach port at Avonmouth, Bristol.
Plans were made to berth in
Liverpool on Monday evening, and to transfer the 414 passengers by coach on
Tuesday morning.
However, sea conditions made
it impossible for a pilot to board the vessel and the local authorities decided
it was unsafe for the ship to enter port.
Funchal took shelter off the
Isle of Man to ride out the worst of the storm, and waited until calmer seas
allowed her to enter the Mersey this morning (Wednesday).
Arrangements have also been
made to transfer passengers joining the ship’s eight-night cruise to the Canary
Islands later today.
Chris Coates, Commercial Director of CMV said: “In
liaison with our agent and port authorities we have done everything we can to
expedite Funchal’s arrival into Liverpool with the comfort and safety of our
passengers our top priority.
“We took the decision yesterday to re-route Funchal
and finish the cruise in Liverpool to seek shelter and avoid the very heavy
seas on our final passage to Avonmouth. Our passengers have been fully updated
of the situation.”
.jpeg)
