Port authorities detain ship which owes crew €80,000 in unpaid wages

THE Latvian ship, Defender, the owners of which owe its nine Russian and Ukrainian crew more than e80,000 in unpaid wages, has been detained by Port State Control in Cork harbour over manning irregularities.

According to the Irish Transport Federation, the Port State Control (PSC) yesterday found the ship was not implementing a safe code of watchkeeping while at sea and it also had concerns over ration levels on the boat.

The ship arrived into Passage West harbour earlier this week carrying a cargo of timber. The ITF sought the arrest of the Defender after receiving a tip-off from onboard that the crew were owed thousands of euro. The ship moved to Cork while the situation was being investigated.