Close but no cigar. The crew on Edda Fides could see land but were not allowed a crew change.
SLOW AHEAD TO HOME WATERS The flotel Edda Fides is back in home waters after finishing its assignments in Malaysia. The months-long sail back from Asia proved unusually demanding, owing to closed ports due to the Corona pandemic. Inge Hansen Brekke (54) captained the first part of the journey. He entered Edda Fides for the first time in November last year, shortly after the last assignment was finished in Malaysian sector, and while the company worked intensely to secure new contracts. Weeks went by with no new assignments forthcoming. After a spell back home at Karmøy, Brekke was back on board in February, shortly before the company decided to return the hotel ship back to Europe, while still working hard in the market.
FIVE KNOTS
In Labuan, Malaysia, the hull was cleaned by divers, and the vessel and its crew of 17 prepared for departure. In early March, they weighed anchor and set course west and north. - We weren’t in a hurry. We planned the voyage for optimal fuel consumption, using mostly just one engine and maintaining a speed of five knots until we rounded South Africa, says Brekke. The first leg of the voyage went to Singapore, where they had planned a change of crew. - It couldn’t be done. The corona pandemic had reached Singapore. But we loaded provisions and bunkered up before sailing to Port Dickson in the Strait of Malacca. There we were allowed, barely, to change the Norwegian part of our crew. We arrived shortly before they closed down completely. We anchored up outside the harbour, and things went relatively smoothly. - And what about the Philippine part of the crew? 24
ØSTENSJØ REDERI
- They were not allowed onshore and had to stay on board all the way to Norway.
SOUTH AFRICA CLOSED
They reached Mauritius in four weeks. Another crew change was planned here, and Brekke himself was to step ashore. Underway, however, they received indications that this might prove difficult, and as they approached the archipelago, their fears were confirmed. Sailing into the harbour, they found it closed, along with the rest of the island. Again, they managed to secure provisions. - At that point, we were on high alert with regards to contagion. We wore full protective equipment and thoroughly disinfected every piece of provision brought on board, even placing it in quarantine. We accepted no risk, he says. - But back at sea, how was life on board sailing at five knots? - We made the most of it, and the spirits on board were high. We arranged barbecues on the pool deck, and were very social. Along the way we arranged line-crossing ceremonies. Six of the crew-members had never crossed the equator, and that occasion has to be celebrated. So naturally, King Neptune and his followers came aboard for the ceremony. The crew survived and had to walk the plank at the end, though thankfully, into the pool. It lifted our spirits. We also managed to complete a fair bit of maintenance on board.
