Preparing for our return to the polar regions

FESCH.TV INFORMIERT:

When the Covid-19 pandemic stopped global travel in 2020, nobody knew how serious it would get or how long it would last. But rather than focus on circumstances beyond our control, we decided to immediately get busy channeling our efforts into something we could control: preparing our vessels for the day we could return to the polar regions with our passengers.

Since the lockdown, we have focused on updating all of our ships so that they’re in the best possible shape for the day we resume sailing. Normally our yearly maintenance is reserved for the spring, the transitional season between the Arctic and Antarctic travel seasons, but due to the closure in world travel we have been upgrading our ships around the clock.

One of our original vessels, for example, is receiving a new engine after 45 years of service. We are also installing a new small generator in the ship that will both increase fuel efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions. Maintenance on this and other vessels includes carpeting, cleaning, and related improvements to various public areas, but the most noteworthy work has been in the area of disease prevention.

All ships have been equipped with ultraviolet germicidal irradiation technology in the form of UVC lights that kill airborne pathogens in the vessels’ heating and air-conditioning systems. We have installed thermal cameras that will detect if passengers register a temperature above normal, and we have also devised stringent disease prevention protocol in the unlikely event that an infection occurs on board.

If this does happen, we now have quarantine rooms with independent air supply and ventilation, enabling passengers with a confirmed or suspected infection to safely quarantine themselves. These are just a selection of our upgrades and disease prevention protocols, of course, as we are always keeping informed of new developments and the latest science as it becomes available.

Getting back to exploring the polar regions with you is what we’re most looking forward to, but the work we do today will lead to a safe and speedy return to doing what we do best tomorrow.