Safety issues over Suomenlinna ferry scare island inhabitants

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The safety or otherwise of the new Suomenlinna II passenger ferry has become the most important current topic on the former fortress island of Suomenlinna, just off the coast of Helsinki. At first, inhabitants were joking about its frequent collisions, but now they are afraid to let their children go to school on the mainland on the vessel.
     
The situation became even worse on Wednesday when the ferry almost collided with one of Viking Line’s cruise ships in Helsinki's South Harbour.
      The inhabitants of Suomenlinna are speculating on what they could do about the matter. Would a petition, a demonstration, or a boycott help to order the ill-starred ferry out of service for good? An obvious choice to lead the possible protest would be the Suomenlinna Society.
     
The issue of the ferry was discussed at the inhabitants’ meeting of the Suomenlinna Society a couple of months ago. However, the event apparently turned into a farce when the representatives of the city, Helsinki City Transport (HKL), and the public utility company Suomenlinnan Liikenne all assured the meeting that everything was all right and all the technical defects and mishaps had been mere coincidences.
     
The inhabitants of Suomenlinna are now afraid of what might happen when the sea freezes over. The vessel, which has already displayed problems with its manoeuvrability in clear water, might get stuck in the ice, and then a journey between the centre of Helsinki and the island of Suomenlinna could take hours.
     
The Finnish Maritime Administration is expecting to receive an accurate account of the near-miss incident between Suomenlinna II and M/S Mariella without delay. Moreover, Ove Hagerlund of the Gulf of Finland Maritime District says that authorities are ready to keep the ferry out of service completely if necessary.
      When the Suomenlinna II was last ordered out of service temporarily in October, the maritime authorities were to examine the safety of the vessel. Apparently, no defect could be found, and the ferry was allowed to continue carrying passengers. Even before that, the Suomenlinna II was taken out of service already in August, until the cause of the ferry’s persistent electrical faults could be ascertained. Later on the ferry was allowed to return to regular scheduled use.
      The ill-fated vessel started carrying passengers to and from the residential area of Suomenlinna, nowadays also a popular tourist attraction off the Helsinki shoreline, at the beginning of last summer.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Suomenlinna ferry in yet another collision (8.10.2004)
  Finnish Maritime Administration orders new Suomenlinna ferry out of service (13.8.2004)

Links:
  Suomenlinna - Sveaborg

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