Asylum seekers ‘removed from Bibby Stockholm after Legionella bacteria found’

The Home Office has said it is removing all 39 asylum seekers who arrived on the vessel, docked in Portland Port in Dorset, this week as a “precautionary measure”.

It said that no migrants have fallen sick or developed Legionnaires’ disease, which is a serious type of pneumonia, and that they are all being provided with “appropriate advice and support”.

The disembarkment comes only four days after the first 15 asylum seekers boarded the barge.

Around 50 people were expected to move onboard the giant vessel but around 20 were granted a last-minute reprieve after a series of legal challenges.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “The health and welfare of individuals on the vessel is our utmost priority.

“Environmental samples from the water system on the Bibby Stockholm have shown levels of Legionella bacteria which require further investigation.

“Following these results, the Home Office has been working closely with UKHSA and following its advice in line with long-established public health processes, and ensuring all protocol from Dorset Council’s environmental health team and Dorset NHS is adhered to.

“As a precautionary measure, all 39 asylum seekers who arrived on the vessel this week are being disembarked while further assessments are undertaken.

“No individuals on board have presented with symptoms of Legionnaires’, and asylum seekers are being provided with appropriate advice and support.

“The samples taken relate only to the water system on the vessel itself and therefore carry no direct risk indication for the wider community of Portland nor do they relate to fresh water entering the vessel. Legionnaires’ disease does not spread from person to person.”

With a capacity of more than 500, the Government hopes that use of Bibby Stockholm, together with former military bases, will help reduce the £6 million a day it is spending on hotel bills for asylum seekers waiting for claims to be processed.