Cross channel freight operator Norfolkline has moved swiftly to reassure hauliers that there are no problems over its vessels' safety after it locked the bow doors on one of its ferries. The 35,000-tonne Dunkirque to Dover ferry, Maersk Delft, is only allowing the entry and exit of all LGVs via its stern doors after experiencing problems with the hinges on the bow doors.
The decision led to one driver contacting Commercial Motor claiming that no reason had been given to drivers about this and expressing concerns over the safety of the vessel. He says: "You have to drive in and then spin around in the hold so you are lined up ready to drive straight back out through the stern, rather than the bows. It's not a great problem, but I thought we stopped doing that 30 years ago when we got Ro Ro!"
Norfolkline's head of operations, Russell Challenor, says: "The bow doors are working. There's a problem with one of the hinges. If we keep using them they will break. There's nothing wrong with them, they are locked shut. It will be repaired very shortly." The ferry service's GM on the Dunkirque to Dover route, Wayne Bullen, adds: "We would never compromise safety, there's no issue of risk. Safety is of paramount importance to us."
The Maersk Delft is a RO/PAX vessel built in 2005 at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in South Korea.
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