Ice to be back: Freo arrival on fire-struck ship marks end to pandemic isolation for Antarctic crew We’re sorry, this service is currently unavailable. Please try again later. Dismiss Normal text size Advertisement David Knoff survived an extended expedition to Antarctica and a fire at sea but setting foot in Fremantle Port this week he says he is just worried about whether he will get shouted down at the supermarket for not being familiar with COVID-19 protocols. The outgoing team leader at Davis Station and 71 other returning expeditioners spent up to 535 days in the Australian Antarctic Territory where they experienced the global pandemic as isolated observers.