08 August 2023 , 13:23
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A Brittany Ferries ship has been forced to divert after multiple crew members became unwell.
The Pont Aven vessel left Santander at 5pm UK time on Monday and was on its way to Plymouth when it arrived in Brest, France at 11.30am local time, following a passenger announcement.
The ferry operator later confirmed that multiple crew members had reported feeling unwell. No passengers were said to have been affected by the illness.
Shore-based medical teams will now carry out a full medical examination of the affected staff. The service - which had been originally scheduled to arrive in the UK at 3.30pm today - will now reach its destination at 10pm this evening.
Brittany Ferries said multiple crew members had reported an illness (stock image)Images from the port in France appeared to show multiple emergency services vehicles waiting for the ship to arrive. One eyewitness said an announcement was made on board stating the ferry needed to divert to Brest "for a medical reason".
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A spokesperson for Brittany Ferries told the Mirror: "The clearance came from the French health authorities, and the vessel departed at around 15:15 UK time (16:15 local French time). Pont-Aven was diverted to Brest this morning after a number of crew members reported feeling unwell. No passengers were affected.
"The decision to divert was made by the captain of Pont-Aven in consultation with the relevant authorities, including the French Centre de Consultation Médicale Maritime (CCMM, Maritime Medical Advisory Centre) based in Purpan, Toulouse, and the French coastguard (CROSS: Centres régionaux opérationnels de surveillance et de secours).
"The ship arrived in Brest at 10:30 UK time this morning (11:30 French local time). We apologise to all passengers affected by today’s diversion to Brest, and would like to thank them for their patience. We will continue to work with the French authorities and our own teams both on board and ashore to determine the cause of today’s incident. The ferry company added that they apologised to customers affected and "would like to thank them for their patience".
Brittany Ferries operate services to across Europe from Portsmouth, Plymouth and Poole.