Strike, mechanical problems causing 'chaos' for Fogo Island residents
With ferry captains on strike provincewide and mechanical problems hampering limited runs back and forth, residents on Fogo and Change Islands have had enough.
They arranged a citizen protest at the ferry terminal for 4 p.m. NT Tuesday to voice their displeasure over the ongoing issues hampering their ability to access hospitals, grocery stores and airports.
The province's ferry captains have been on strike for eight days, after working the last eight years without a contract with the provincial government.
Things took a turn for the worse for Fogo residents on Saturday when the MV Veteran — which was taking people back and forth on limited trips each day — was taken out of commission.
"It's chaos out here," said Eugene Nippard, a resident of Deep Bay on Fogo Island. "It started with one trip a day, then two trips a day and then the weekend the Veteran [ferry] broke down."
Wait times making people angry
Shelley Penton Rideout was supposed to return to her summer home in Fogo that day. She had headed to Gander and Clarenville for supplies, and was heading back when she got word the boat was out of service.
She called the provincial ferry line and checked social media, and decided to give it a shot, hoping another boat was en route to pick up the slack.
After waiting in line in Farewell for 2.5 hours, she turned around and headed back.
Penton Rideout is one of many people who have had to wait for days to get across. She said the lineup was growing more and more hostile as time went on.
"People are screaming and yelling at each other," she said. "Things are going to happen and it's not going to be so pretty."
Penton Rideout believes more needs to be done to communicate issues with travellers. She said the phone line rarely has up-to-date information, and the ferry groups on social media are run by residents and can be filled with speculation and rumours.
"There has to be something else in place. Right now there isn't. The guy at the ticket booth knew just as much as me, a traveller."
Travellers with medical issues have been told they can jump to the front of the line, but Penton Rideout said her father, who has a note stating he has Stage 4 cancer, was denied a spot on a crossing and had to wait several hours in his car for the ferry to return and leave again.
Nippard said residents met up after several days of frustrations and planned a protest. He said he doesn't know what will happen, but hopes it remains civil and gets results.
"The economy is just about shut down. We were just starting to bounce back from COVID and here we are in this mess," he said.
"It's just insane. We can't take it anymore. I don't know what's going to happen [at the protest]. I don't know. But there's a lot of anger."
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