MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Smooth Start to Cruising Season in the Falklands.
Tuesday morning saw the arrival in Port Stanley of the cruise vessel Amsterdam and the start of the summer cruise season.
Fortunately the 1,340 passengers and 520 crew members of the Dutch-flagged vessel, the predicted rain, hail and possible snow stayed away and those who came ashore experienced a quiet and pleasant day in the Falkland Islands capital.
Ships as large as the Amsterdam normally anchor in the town's outer harbour and the passengers come ashore in launches or tenders which moor at the Public Jetty in front of the Visitor Centre, which has been newly refurbished for the season.
Perhaps because of the weather forecast, the first few launches to, brought only a few intrepid passengers to wander Stanley's picturesque streets or take advantage of the variety of tours on offer. However, Tourist Board Manager, Connie Stevens, experiencing her first cruise ship day since being appointed in July, said that after the slow start "it seemed to have been a steady stream all day". She and her team in the Information Centre had been talking to the mainly North American visitors from their arrival to their departure, shortly after three in the afternoon and had been pleased to find that most had enjoyed a positive experience and that some had expressed a desire to return for a longer stay.
A new feature of the arrangements for such day visitors to Stanley this year is the presence on the Public Jetty of security staff and a newly completed secure area for the random screening of passengers and crew returning to the ships. These measures, which might appear strange given the isolated and peaceful nature of the Falklands, are nevertheless necessary to bring the port in line with the requirements of the Safety of Lives at Sea (SOLAS) Convention, which are designed to combat the threat of possible maritime terrorism
The installation of barriers, enclosed shelters, metal detector and a small area for searches, is estimated to have cost FI Government in the region of £90, 000. A three year contract to supply security services for cruise ship visits has been awarded by the Falkland Islands Government to local firm, Falkland Airport Services Ltd at an annual price of £73,763. These costs will be shared amongst the cruising industry by means of an increase in the passenger landing tax.
Harbour Master, Jon Clarke, who is the designated officer in charge of port security, was on hand to see how the new arrangements worked and declared he was well-pleased at how smoothly the first day had gone. Passengers had been selected at random for screening throughout the day and this had caused no problems or delays, despite the fact that the decision of the ship to land its launches at the jetty intended for departures and leave from the pontoons intended for arrivals had caused a reversal in direction of the intended .passenger flow.
John Fowler (MP) Stanley
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