And while repairs are set to be done to the slow boat later in the week, Condor requisitioned a crane in Portsmouth on the 27th December to get most of the vehicles off and return them to their owners. A few were still left on board though, and were finally lifted back on to dry land in Guernsey on Sunday.
Condor CEO Paul Luxon told Express one of the ramp mechanism’s housing pieces had locked into place, and a replacement had had to be made.
Pictured: Paul Luxon.
“They are busy fabricating the replacements now, and then the repairs will be done between the 2nd January and the 4th. Everything should be back to normal by the 5th,” he said.
“The Clipper has continued to run through all of this apart from on the 24th, but only for freight. Then we have got the Arrow – our back up Ro-Ro vessel – to cover for the Clipper while the repairs are done in Portsmouth.”
While it was trying to recover the vehicles, Condor arranged for passengers whose cars were stuck to have hire cars, whether they were in Guernsey, Jersey or Portsmouth. Mr Luxon said they did everything they could to accommodate people while they were trying to deal with the issue.
“We have to offer a massive thanks to our passengers for their stoicism, and also to our freight customers. It was horrible timing for this to happen at Christmas, but we are incredibly grateful for everyone’s patience.”
Immediately following the breakdown, Condor issued a statement saying: “Condor sincerely regrets this event and is acutely aware of the seasonal sensitivity being so close to Christmas and this being the last main freight delivery day I to the CI’s. Every contingency option possible has been assessed, evaluated and sadly confronted with practical obstacles to implement.”
Pictured top: the Clipper will be repaired in Portsmouth.