Six Crew Still Missing Since Two Cargo Ships Vanished off Kish
Six seafarers, including two Indians, are still missing six months after the Bolivian-flagged cargo ships Bridge 1 and Bridge 2 disappeared in the Persian Gulf, according to a Reuters feature published on 10 November. The ships’ last AIS signal was recorded on 9 May about 8 nautical miles from Kish Island, an Iranian island off the country’s southern coast.
The two ships were reportedly carrying steel in Iranian trade. Neither appears on the IMO’s list of incidents in the region. The missing crew include two Indians and three Iraqis. One of them is Naveen Kumar, 23, from Dindigul in Tamil Nadu. His family says he was told his job was in Dubai but was sent to Iran a week later. The family had borrowed about Rs 15 lakh for his training. “Every passing minute is agony,” his mother said.
From the CrewMirror Blog
An official of an Iraqi maritime body in Basra said nobody knows whether the vessels sank or were seized. In India, the Seamen’s Employment Office withdrew the licence of the Mumbai recruiter Lascar Marine Services by an order dated 22 May and barred its directors from maritime business for five years for failing to repatriate seafarers or pay their wages.
The feature also notes that the IMO has confirmed about 130 incidents involving merchant ships in the region since late February, with at least 25 seafarers killed, and that crew hiring costs in the Gulf have risen sharply since the conflict began.
CrewMirror Takeaway
Seafarers should be wary of job offers where the destination changes after joining, and should confirm the RPS agency’s licence on the DGMA website before travelling. Families are better placed to get help quickly if they keep the ship’s name, IMO number and agency details on record.
