A ramp failure on the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry ‘Loch Riddon’ resulted in passengers being stuck on board for over two hours.

Gregory Beecroft, who took the photo of the ferry at 12.30 at Largs Pier on Sunday, said: “The drivers and passengers of the five cars and one van trapped on board cannot have been happy. I think it was not possible to close the ramp when “Loch Riddon” was due to leave Largs at midday (but am not certain of this) and it was still at the pier with vehicles on board an hour later. I don’t know when the problem was sorted out.

A Caledonian MacBrayne spokesman apologised for any inconvenience caused to passengers, and said: “At 11.15, it was discovered that there was a fault on the MV Loch Riddon. The ferry couldn’t get people off. It berthed at Largs and got a temporary fix done at 1.30pm which allowed people to get off.

“Engineers got the ferry fully fixed and back in service by 4pm. Customers were given refreshments while we sorted out the problem. There was a total of 56 people on board, and six cars.”