Spain Sends Tug to Rescue Ship Left Adrift Without Fuel or Provisions

December 1 ------ Spanish maritime authorities have decided to tow a ship that had allegedly been abandoned by its owners without fuel or provisions in the Strait of Gibraltar, according to local media.

The Maritime Captaincy for the Port of Malaga told Spanish outlet Sur that the vessel in question, the 5,800-dwt coastal freighter Marine I, was drifting near the Strait and had been without propulsion for 10 days. The crew were reportedly without fuel, water or food, and their ship had been plagued by mechanical issues.

The Malaga Maritime Authority reported that a tug, the Luz De Mar, was dispatched to take the Marine I in tow and bring it into port at Malaga. The decision was made in order to ensure the safety of the ship and the crew, accord to Sur.

The Marine I (IMO 9007001) is a freighter built in 1994, and is crewed by 17 seafarers from Azerbaijan, Egypt, Ghana, Montenegro, Nigeria and Ukraine, according to the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF). Per the ITF's abandonment database, the crewmembers were owed two months of back pay. The owner is based in the UAE, and it also controls another ship, the Sundry (IMO 9045651). This second freighter - like Marine I - has an extensive history of deficiencies.

Source: maritime-executive.com