Posted on 01/01/2023 8:37:13 AM PST by BenLurkin
Hundreds of passengers have been stranded on a cruise ship floating off Australian coast after a fungus was found growing on its hull.
The Viking Orion was reportedly denied permission to dock in Adelaide after authorities discovered a "marine growth" on the ship.
Australia's fisheries department said the fungus - which it called biofoul - was "potentially harmful".
Officials said the ship's hull must be cleared before entering the country.
Biofoul is an accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, or small animal and can allow the importation of invasive species into non-native habitats.
The fisheries department said the management of fungus was a "common practice for all arriving international vessels" and said that the ship had to be cleaned to avoid "harmful marine organisms being transported" into Australian waters.
The 14-deck, 930-person ship - which was built in 2018 - has reportedly dropped anchor around 17 miles (27km) off the coast while the cleaning occurs.
In a statement, operator Viking admitted that a "limited amount of standard marine growth" was being cleared from the ship's hull and said that this had caused the vessel to "miss several stops on this itinerary".
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
I’ve been on a couple of cruises, but have had no interest with all of the illness related issues over the last 10 years.
Yay cruises……..
Oh, gmafb. Ships are dumping ballast all over the planet and they’re worried about a supposed ‘fungus’ which would propagate with marine life migration (whales, etc.)?
Climate change for sure!
“Is this really a “thing?” Could I use this as an excuse to deny my mother-in-law entry to our home?”
Just tell her she needs a few months in drydock while her bow and everything below the waterline is scraped, resurfaced and repainted. Tell her she may want to get the engines checked as the exhaust seems to be running a bit “rich.”
If she gets upset just explain you’re looking out for her best interests, good SIL that you are.
Nice.
I never thought of biofoul. I always thought the biggest concern was the Norovirus.
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