ITF: 11 Crewmembers Abandoned on Sinking Bulker Off Somalia

[727Sky]

Sad tale... where is the humanity ?

An aging bulker and its crew have been abandoned off of a far-flung foreign port, according to the International Transport Workers' Federation, and this particular case is worse than most: the location is inside of the Somali piracy high-risk zone, and the vessel is actively taking on water.
According to ITF, eleven seafarers are trapped aboard the 1977-built Haj Abdullah (IMO 7702114), and the ship is unable to leave an anchorage off Mogadishu. Only her bilge pumps are keeping her afloat.
The 44-year-old bulker developed cracks below the water line as she was transporting a cargo of sulfur from Dubai to Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. On August 31, the Haj Abdullah called at Mogadishu for an inspection and for supplies. However, the port authorities would not allow the ship into the harbor and insisted it remain anchored off the coast. The crew has been there ever since, ITF reported, stuck on a vessel that cannot be repaired with the resources on hand. 
“The seafarers have been pumping out water day and night to keep her afloat,” said Mohamed Arrachedi, Arab World and Iran Network Coordinator for the ITF. “Food and water will run out in a day or so. The international community still considers the coast off Somali to be at high risk of piracy. The crew is in an extremely perilous situation.”
The 11 crewmembers have also gone unpaid for about 4-6 months, ITF says, and the vessel's Lebanese owners have reportedly not responded to inquiries. The vessel's flag state, Sierra Leone, ranks among the lowest-performing registries in the world for port state inspection quality - second to last on the Tokyo MOU black list - and while the flag's administrator told ITF that it is investigating, the union asserts that Sierra Leone has taken no practical steps to help. 
“We all fear for our lives stuck here at anchor,” one crew member told the ITF. “At the moment the pumps are coping but we have no way of knowing how long the ship may stay afloat until we can get the hull inspected. It is a very frightening situation.”
The ITF has contacted the insurer in order to use the MLC financial security clause for vessel abandonment. This would give each crewmember up to four months of back pay and would cover the cost of their repatriation. However, without cooperation from the Port of Mogadishu, ITF says, there is no way to get the crew home. 
"There are clear obligations to ships’ crews like the Haj Abdullah. These seafarers need food and water now, and they need the safety of the ship to be addressed urgently," said Steve Trowsdale, the ITF’s Inspectorate Coordinator. "They also need their outstanding wages. They have been abandoned by the owners and now the duty to act falls to the flag and port states."

[Ninurta]

Sad tale... where is the humanity ?

...
However, without cooperation from the Port of Mogadishu, ITF says, there is no way to get the crew home. 

...

Without cooperation from Mogadishu? What the hell is that? Since when has anyone needed the cooperation of Mogadishu for anything? You send in a couple gunboats to provide cover, and a couple of choppers to get the guys off the boat, and then just keep on trucking.

What the hell kinda clown world are we leaving to our kids when anyone has gotta ask for cooperation from Mogadishu?

.

[NightskyeB4Dawn]

Sad tale... where is the humanity ?

...
However, without cooperation from the Port of Mogadishu, ITF says, there is no way to get the crew home. 

...

Without cooperation from Mogadishu? What the hell is that? Since when has anyone needed the cooperation of Mogadishu for anything? You send in a couple gunboats to provide cover, and a couple of choppers to get the guys off the boat, and then just keep on trucking.

What the hell kinda clown world are we leaving to our kids when anyone has gotta ask for cooperation from Mogadishu?

.

I was thinking the same thing. 

How the Hell could anyone have a problem with sending in a boat to rescue the people?

The fact that they know the people are stranded there and did not send them assistance, is something else all together.

For them to stop someone else from helping them, would not be considered a wise move, if I had anything to do with it.

If they don't value the lives of others, then they make their own lives forfeit. 

Just the way I see it.

[guohua]

Sad tale... where is the humanity ?

...
However, without cooperation from the Port of Mogadishu, ITF says, there is no way to get the crew home. 

...

Without cooperation from Mogadishu? What the hell is that? Since when has anyone needed the cooperation of Mogadishu for anything? You send in a couple gunboats to provide cover, and a couple of choppers to get the guys off the boat, and then just keep on trucking.

What the hell kinda clown world are we leaving to our kids when anyone has gotta ask for cooperation from Mogadishu?

.

That is Somalia.
I'm surprised the Pirates haven't boarded it.
But I'm with you, just go in and take them off that Wreak.
Kill anyone who tries to stop the rescue.

[NightskyeB4Dawn]

That is Somalia.
I'm surprised the Pirates haven't boarded it.
But I'm with you, just go in and take them off that Wreak.
Kill anyone who tries to stop the rescue.

I am not a violent person. I don't think you can find anyone more diplomatic than myself.

Unfortunately, it is a poor match for my quick temper. Though it is a rare circumstance when a person has to put me in check, because I have already done the job for them, long before it ever gets out of hand. Most likely several times.

Saying all that just to say that I agree with you. Temper would win out on that one.

[Ninurta]

@"Guohua" - Yup, it's Somalia. Somali pirates are not noted for their overabundance of brains, just violence. I had a friend who was thinking of starting up a security company to provide maritime security to ships running that area, looking for advice against pirates. I told him I figured 4 or 5 guards per ship with two 50 cals among the group and an assault rifle or SMG per man, maybe a few AT rockets, ought to do the trick against Somali pirates. The key is to dump them and their boats to the bottom of the sea before they get close enough to board, and all that requires is at least one man on watch for them 24/7, and enough firepower to punch their boat full of holes at a distance greater than their weapons range. Most Somali pirates just use AKs and RPG-7's. a .50 cal will outrun them. If you can dump them to the bottom or turn them around beyond 500 yards, their AKs and RPGs are useless.

Somalia has a strip of relative civilization on the north coast, around Berbera, but the rest of the nation is just a failed state owned and operated by Muslim warlords, kinda like Afghanistan will be by this time next year.

.

[ABNARTY]

Wow. Not welcome in Mogadishu. What does that say?