Ebola creating ‘atmosphere of fear’ in shipping industry as coastguard steps in
Maritime and Coastguard Agency monitoring vessels entering UK waters that have visited ports in west Africa affected by virus
Terry Macalister
The Guardian
Sunday 26 October 2014
Ships entering UK waters that have visited ports in west Africa affected by the Ebola virus are being monitored by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, which is asking them to provide details of the “health status” on board.
There have been claims of an “atmosphere of fear” in the shipping industry, which has led to some seafarers and shipowners refusing to call at those ports in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea at the centre of the medical emergency.
If there is any reason to suspect someone on a vessel has the life-threatening disease, a ship in British waters will be required to divert to a port designated by the marine authorities, the MCA said in a circular sent to ports and their pilots.
There was also a warning that the information about a vessel of interest affected by Ebola should only be used and shared by individuals who have a genuine operational interest.
No seafarers are yet known to have contracted the virus but the website of the London-based insurance business Steamship Mutual reported in August that Ebola’s “virulence has created an atmosphere of fear. There are examples of crews refusing to enter ports in countries where outbreak of the disease has been reported.”
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