Caledonian Isles removed from service after positive Covid tests
MV Caledonian Isles, one of the two ferries serving Arran during the summer holidays, had to be removed from service and sailings cancelled over three days at the start of this week owing to staff testing positive for Covid.
On Sunday, two afternoon sailings were cancelled and a further sailing delayed after a positive case of Covid was confirmed onboard. This required a deep clean of the vessel and close contacts identified.
The following day, four sailings by the Caledonian Isles were cancelled due to ‘operational reasons’ owing to four members of staff testing positive for the virus and others having to self-isolate.
Throughout Tuesday all sailings on the affected vessel were cancelled and the service resumed at 6pm that evening with a departure from Ardrossan.
On all three days, MV Isle of Arran continued to operate as normal and on Sunday CalMac provided additional sailings from Lochranza to assist with the demand. By Tuesday, MV Loch Linnhe was brought in to operate a shuttle service at Lochranza, alongside MV Catriona’s published timetabled service, to assist passengers affected by the disruption.
The disruption comes at one of the busiest times of the year and just as the restrictions across Scotland started to ease on Monday when Scotland moved to beyond Level 0. The unfortunate circumstance also occurred the day before capacity restrictions on ferries would have returned to normal.
CalMac’s travel guidelines urge customers to voluntarily self-test for Covid three days before travelling to any Scottish island and to take another test on the day of travel. Passengers are also advised to not travel on the ferry and to stay at home if they feel unwell or, if anyone in their household is experiencing coronavirus symptoms. Face coverings are required by law to be worn on all public transport, including on the ferry, within indoor areas of the vessels and inside CalMac ports and offices, unless exempt.