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This shipyard in western Turkey has seen an influx of cruise ships due to the pandemic.
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Cruise companies like Carnival have decided to sell their old ships after losing billions of dollars in 2020.
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Thousands of workers spend a year in perilous conditions that destroy just one ship.
Cruise line industry lost billions by end of 2020
Workers from the Arya ship dismantle a shipyard in western Turkey Usually only a few dozen cargo ships were destroyed Year. But after the COVID-19 pandemic hit the cruise ship industry, demolition sites were flooded with ships.
The industry lost billions of dollars by the end of 2020, and Carnival Cruise Line lost even more. $4 billion in Q2 2020.
Pandemic caused Carnival, Costa and Pullmantur cruise lines to send ships to be scrapped in Turkey
Carnival Cruise Lines sold six ships for scrap and they were taken to the Ariaa Ship Breaking Yard. Dismantling these large vessels is one of the most dangerous jobs, and the added load makes the job even more difficult.
Emre Aras, project manager at Avsar Gemi Sokum, told Insider:
The process begins with the captain coordinating with the harbor master to dock the vessel in Turkey.
“Then the front of the boat’s bowl is grounded on the shore while the stern is still floating,” Arras said.
It takes thousands of workers to dismantle a single cruise ship.
While the boat is being inspected, the crew come up with a way to dismantle the ship. About 2,500 shipbreakers remove valuables from ships and empty them deck by deck, mostly by hand.
“With hundreds of rooms on board, cruise ships are easily the most difficult type of ship to dismantle,” Aras said.
Workers then move on to dismantling pools, gyms, etc., and stripping walls, windows, floors and railings.
This job is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world and exposes workers to a wide range of risks.
Nicola Mulinaris, head of communications and policy at the NGO Shipbreaking Platform, told Insider that those involved in the process are taking a lot of risks. Murinaris explained that workers are at risk of falling from heights, breathing toxic fumes, hitting falling objects and dealing with fire hazards from equipment such as blow torches.
Needless to say, these shipbreakers work in extreme weather conditions in both summer and winter months. Plus, mistakes can damage the environment and ruin millions of dollars’ worth of parts that need to be kept in a specific condition in order to be reused.
Aria yards have been improved in recent years to increase safety.
dozens of shipyards wOrderer dies or is injured Southeast Asia in recent years. However, conditions in Turkish shipyards were similarly deteriorating in her late 1990s, but it was not until the early 2000s that reports of unsafe conditions forced a change in policy. By 2018, Aria’s shipyards began complying with the European Union’s ship recycling regulations. This means that the shipyard has improved. Limit environmental hazards Ship dismantling.
“Practices have improved, but there are still concerns related to the long-term health effects of workers’ exposure to toxic substances,” Mulinaris told Insider, adding that some workers said these Others take jobs for a pay raise.
Cruise ships take a long time to dismantle, but can bring huge profits
Aras told Insider it could take a year to dismantle these ships, but the materials removed from the ships are usually sold quickly, and the metal from the ships is recycled for future construction. could bring a profit of $4 million.
“We have a lot of second-hand items on board, so you can make good money,” Arras said.
View shipbreaking yard details
Read the original article at insider