Rabat- The passengers aboard a vessel owned by the company Grandi Navi Veloci (GNV) coming from Tangier refused to disembark at the French Port of Sete, on August 26.
The ship, which left Morocco very late, was unable to dock on time at the Port of Sete due to constraints linked to the Covid-19 health crisis, according to French media outlet Midi Libre.
The passengers expressed anger and frustration aboard the overnight ferry from Wednesday to Thursday.
Since Tuesday, August 17, a new change in French legislation now requires all non-vaccinated passengers, or passengers who received vaccines that are deemed unauthorized in France, to be subject to an antigen test.
“During the first stages of the implementation of this new measure, it was the Sdis 34 firefighters who were in charge of carrying out the tests. In recent days, the Biomed34 laboratory has taken over, ”explains Midi Libre.
Passengers spent the night on the boat because of the new sanitary procedure, coupled with the ferry’s delay. One passenger aboard the ferry stated that GNV had promised a refund of 50% of the ticket price following this important delay.
“But the captain reneged on this promise and refuses to issue the necessary certificates to be reimbursed. This is what ignited the powder,” the passenger explained.
Faced with a situation “extremely tense throughout the night between some of the passengers and those responsible for the ferry,” the police were mobilized from 11 am at the port. However, “several dozen people still refused to disembark, while a message broadcast by loudspeaker threatened a police intervention.”
