• A potentially hazardous growth was discovered on the hull of a cruise.
• Before entering Australia, the ship’s hull must be cleaned.
• The 2018-built ship has allegedly anchored about 27 km off the coast.

A potentially hazardous growth was discovered on the hull of a cruise liner off the coast of Australia, leaving hundreds of guests stranded.

Authorities reportedly refused to allow the Viking Orion to dock in Adelaide after finding “biofoul”—a buildup of microbes, plants, algae, or small animals.

This may enable the importation of invasive species into ecosystems that are not natural.

Before entering Australia, the ship’s hull must be cleaned, according to officials.

The Australian fisheries department did not corroborate previous allegations that the growth was a fungus.

The ship needed to be cleaned, according to the department, to prevent “harmful marine species being transferred” into Australian seas. The department claimed that managing biofoul was “standard practise for all arriving international boats.”

In order to clean the hull while at anchor outside of Australian waters, professional divers were hired directly by the vessel line or agent, it was claimed.

Additionally, it was apparently impossible for the ship to dock in Christchurch, Dunedin, or Hobart. Over 800 passengers were still on board, and one passenger reported on Twitter that many of them were “upset and enraged” about the company’s “negligence.”

The 2018-built, 14-deck, 930-person ship has allegedly anchored about 17 miles (27 km) off the coast until the cleaning is done.

The ship’s owner, Viking, acknowledged that a “small quantity of typical marine growth” was being removed from the hull in a statement and claimed that this was the reason why the ship “missed numerous destinations on this route.”

However, it stated that it anticipated sailing in the direction of Melbourne in the ensuing hours and docking there on January 2. It said, “Viking is directly collaborating with passengers on compensation for the impact on their voyage.

The ship’s captain apologised in a letter to passengers on Friday for “the current voyage falling short of your expectations” and promised that a Viking customer relations representative will send them a “updated offer of compensation” soon.

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