Subic Bay, Philippines :: Doulos Hope completes her annual maintenance.
Every year, GBA Ships’ vessels undergo a period of maintenance. This annual maintenance sometimes includes a ‘dry dock’ phase when the ship is taken out of the water for necessary repairs and inspections. For latest vessel Doulos Hope, this November marked the first dry dock since her launch. During this time, some crewmembers stayed on shore to serve in local communities, while others remained on board.
We are grateful for the renewal of all passenger ship safety certificates to enable sailing for another year. For this to happen, crew had to adapt to an unexpected beginning of the maintenance period. A typhoon in the region caused an abrupt entry to dry dock. In a Doulos Hope project status report, it was stated, “It was not the start we had planned for, but everyone did a fantastic job pivoting and changing arrangements to accommodate the new circumstances.”
Unity and adaptation are an essential in intense working conditions such as this. Crewmember Flor (Argentina) shared, “One of the things that kept me going was having a very good support team.” She went on to describe her favourite memory during the period of maintenance – enjoying food with her friends in front of a fan, enduring the soon-to-be-fixed air conditioning system in good spirits.
With over 200 projects to be completed in a mere three weeks, Doulos Hope crew was graciously assisted by contractors, hired crew and project workers, who were warmly welcomed on board especially for this season.
Isabel (Germany), one of the 13 project workers, shared about her first ever dry dock experience, “I met so many nice people. It’s such a nice experience to go so far away from home and to meet people that have the same passion. [I have loved] the conversations, to get to know new people, to have fun together and work together.” Isabel even encouraged others to join as project workers, saying “It would be a really great experience.”
Thank you to all those who took part in this annual maintenance period. We look forward to seeing Doulos Hope continue her journey around the world!
If you are interested in using your skills to become a project worker or serving on board as a crewmember during the next annual maintenance period on one of our vessels, please contact us here.