Gozo ferry service returning to normal

The Gozo Channel ferry service started returning to normal yesterday evening after serious disruption at the weekend due to strong winds, which forced the vessels to berth at Sa Maison instead of Cirkewwa.

The Meteorological Office said that northwesterly winds reached force 7 - almost gale force - on Saturday afternoon, abating slightly to force 6 on Sunday.

Gozo Channel general manager Marvic Fenech Adami said when contacted yesterday the service started getting back to normal from Cirkewwa after the company obtained the necessary clearance from the Malta Maritime Authority.

The clearance was given once a survey of the area ensured that it was safe to berth at Cirkewwa.

Mr Fenech Adami said the vessels operated from Mgarr to Cirkewwa on Saturday morning but then opted for the safer, but longer, route to Sa Maison in the afternoon.

"The rough seas had swept building material from the Cirkewwa quay, where works had been taking place, so we did not want to take the risk of berthing there until we were absolutely certain of the situation," Mr Fenech Adami said.

Inclement weather conditions still made Cirkewwa's South Quay inoperable yesterday morning so the service was again diverted to Sa Maison.

Scheduled trips from Mgarr to Cirkewwa started to operate regularly with effect from 4.30 p.m. In the meantime, a total of eight round trips had been performed to Sa Maison.

The switch from Cirkewwa to Sa Maison caused inconvenience at Mgarr as passengers had to wait two hours in the long queues before embarking on their 90-minute long trip to Malta.

Passengers who contacted The Times said they understood it was impossible for the ferries to be on time given the strong winds, but the long delay and the "four-hour journey" completely disrupted their plans.

One family had planned to have lunch with relatives in Mellieha. To make sure they were there on time they drove to Mgarr at 11 a.m. but did not get to their final destination until 3.30 p.m.

A regular user said he was extremely upset at the delays. "I arrived at Mgarr on Saturday at 1.15 p.m. to catch the scheduled 1.30 p.m. boat. However, it was not until I decided to find out for myself what was going on that I was told by a policeman that the next boat would be leaving at 3.30 p.m. and would berth at Sa Maison," he said.

"I can understand there being delays in bad weather but I found it unacceptable that the Malita - which is the biggest ferry - was not even being used at a time when the queues were already enormous."

When asked about this, Mr Fenech Adami said Gozo Channel normally operated a smooth service to Cirkewwa with just two vessels and without any delays.

"Until Saturday morning we were still using two vessels. We then switched to using three later in the afternoon in an attempt to reduce the inconvenience," he said.

Gozo Channel regrets any inconvenience to its customers.