Campaigners calling for an urgent limit on the number of cruise ships visiting Majorca fear a serious accident will happen unless major changes are made. The Platform against Mega Cruise Ships says the island should only accept one arrival per day and must start to encourage smaller, less polluting cruise ships instead.
They say there is a real risk of a collision in the port of Palma, and passengers on board, together with people on land, are in danger. The Platform against Mega Cruise Ships believes a report from the Maritime Safety inspector “confirms” the need for a moratorium, to allow just one large cruise ship a day. The document, signed in October 2023 by inspector Gabriel Malvido, “warns of the risk posed by the docking and departure manoeuvres of large cruise ships, especially in adverse weather conditions.”
And it recalls “an incident that occurred a few years ago, when a cruise ship, pushed by strong winds, broke a mast and collided with an oil tanker,” says the Platform against Mega Cruise Ships in relation to the Britannia’s collision with an oil tanker in August 2023.
In August of 2023, strong winds of around 120 kilometres per hour hit Mallorca and broke the moorings of the Britannia cruise ship, pushing it to the other end of the dock until it collided with the Castillo de Arteaga oil tanker.
The ship was carrying thousands of British tourists who were preparing to disembark in the middle of the storm. A small number of people suffered minor injuries.
As a result of the collision, the tanker suffered a hole in its hull on the side of the quay, but no oil was spilt into the sea.
“According to the new safety report, these types of accidents are not isolated events and can be repeated, with serious consequences for the safety of the port and the coastal population,” say the protestors.
The Platform recalls that “for years, we have denounced not only the environmental and social impacts of mega cruise ships but also the risks to safety.”
It calls for “a model based on smaller, less polluting cruise ships with a cultural profile that encourages discovery and respect for the city.”
The report was addressed to the head of the Maritime Captaincy in Palma, José Fernando Escalas, and was written at the request of the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands (APB). It was a consultation on the operation of the moorings located on pier 7 of the Club de Mar and a new distribution of the berths.
“An unfavourable report is issued to the request for temporary authorisation of the Club de Mar Mallorca on the grounds that it is not compatible with the current port operation in safe conditions,” said the Maritime Safety inspector.
“The reality is that today the size of the cruise ships considered when designing the expansion of the Club de Mar has been greatly exceeded and as a result of the subsequent construction of the platform of the 1st alignment of Ponent docks, the available water mirror between its north face and the expansion of the Club de Mar has been significantly reduced,” the document concludes.
The Platform, which has been denouncing the environmental, social and safety impacts of mega cruise ships for years, considers that this document supports its request for a moratorium that limits the arrival of a maximum of one ship of this type per day.
