Panne on the Baltic Sea: Ferry Berlin turns around, 500 passengers affected!

Panne on the Baltic Sea: Ferry Berlin turns around, 500 passengers affected!

An unusual incident brought the trip to many passengers to stand still on the Baltic Sea at the weekend. The hybrid ferry "Berlin", which runs between Rostock and the Danish Gedser, had to cancel its crossing due to a mechanical defect. Captain Jörg Ellner, in the service of the ferry since 2016, described this situation as one of the worst that can happen to a captain. Although Denmark was only 20 meters away, the ferry had to turn around and bring the approximately 500 passengers back to Rostock, which led to a delay of over seven hours, as moin.de

The technical breakdown concerned the bugvisier, which could not be opened due to a defective security. As a result, unloading in the Danish port was impossible, which led to a stressful waiting period for the passengers. The passenger Regina reported one hour of one hour that she and others had to spend in the car without any information. The crew tried to defuse the situation by going to car from car to give the passengers information, because loudspeaker announcements did not arrive everywhere.

trip and compensation claims

After the return transport in Rostock, the passengers had to switch to the ferry "Copenhagen" to continue their trip. The question of compensation arises in particular in the case of such delays. According to the EU regulations for travelers who are traveling on ferries, passengers are entitled to a reimbursement of up to 50 percent of the fare in a delay of more than the duplicated time, which is explained in detail on [EU Europe] (https://europa.eu/youreurope/citens/travel/ passenger-rights/tsex_de.htm).

Scandlines spokeswoman Anette Ustrup Svendsen made it clear that the security of passengers was never endangered. All travelers were continuously supplied with food and drinks. Vacation plans could still be confused, and the situation caused displeasure and annoyance for some passengers while waiting for information.

technical challenges and the way forward

The "Berlin" is a special ship that only creates in Rostock and Gedser. This means that alternative ports were not available. These limited options caused the truck and car in Rostock to drive backwards from the ferry or turn on the deck - unloading, which normally only lasts six minutes, took considerably longer.

It is also noteworthy that the crew could shorten the ship's failure; The problem was fixed around 9 p.m. Thanks to their quick response, an even longer standstill could be avoided. The incidents on the Baltic Sea once again show how important security and information transfer are during travel at sea. The travel industry is still responsible for offering the passengers clear information and support in order to better manage such situations in the future.