A Maryport singer has spoken out after her ordeal of being stuck at sea for 74 days due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Chelsea Reynolds, 25, was onboard a cruise ship where she works as a singer when countries started closing their borders due to Covid-19.

She sailed to four continents, crossed the Equator twice and endured two transatlantic journeys, wondering when she would be able to return home.

Chelsea eventually managed to get back to Maryport on May 16, almost two months after she was due to return home.

“Every time I see my dad again when I come back is like no time has passed, I told him all my stories and showed him on a map the route we went through, we went in a circle around the world without ever getting off," she said.

“Now I want things to go back to normal, it hasn’t put me off from working on ships, through this I made stronger bonds with people than I would normally.

“For example I made really good friends with the captain and you don’t normally get to socialise with captains as they’re so busy.

“Everyone onboard was looking out for each other.

“What worried me getting back home was that I didn’t know the rules, normally I’d be home for a month and I’d visit my family, which I can’t do.”

Chelsea’s cruise started in France and then went to the Middle East, the Seychelles and Madagascar. Passengers managed to get off in Cape Town but the crew did not get permission to leave the ship. For 18 days they struggled for food, with no fresh fruit nor vegetables and having ran out of things such as deodorant and toothpaste. The ship then sailed to Barbados and Florida, where they spent days off the coast waiting to find out if they would be allowed off.

After 60 days, they were finally moved to another ship in the Bahamas, which took them to Barcelona, where she was able to fly back to the UK via France.

She said: “When they moved us to the other ship, we travelled in gloves and masks, they fogged us with disinfectant and then we had to take a mandatory shower. They put our clothes in biohazard bags for them to be washed.

"We were confused because we hadn’t got off the ship for 60 days and no one had been unwell.”

On the new ship, Chelsea and the rest of the crew were allowed to stay in passenger cabins, which have balconies, unlike the crew ones. And she was also able to eat chocolate and crisps after three months.

“We played cards a lot and watched a lot of movies.

"Social distancing came in as well, and we had to have our temperature checked two or three times a day.

“Before we got off in Barcelona, we also had the nurses checking our oxygen levels.”

Once on dry land, the group travelled to the airport on a bus, social distancing, wearing PPE and with plastic coverings on the bus.

But at the airport the airline’s system failed and they had to wait for three hours with no food nor water.

When they were eventually able to go through security, they had to rush for the plane and she almost lost her connecting flight in France.

“I was worried about being away from my family in case something happened, but this experience brought out the best in people. I know some cruise lines are having various issues, but that hasn’t been the case for us.

“Everyone has been looking on the bright side and we were taking each day as it came.

“I feel like I handled myself pretty well. I thought ‘Whatever happens, I’ll deal with it’.”

Chelsea’s next contract on a cruise ship is in September and she is concerned about being at home with nothing to do until then.

She said: “I need to look for some work, anything, because I can’t sit and do nothing.”