Nine Celtic Star seafarers to return home this evening

The nine Romanian seafarers who left the Celtic Star vessel on Christmas Eve because of unpaid wages have flown home to Bucharest.

Arrears amounting to almost €27,000 have been paid to them by the Irish charters of the vessel, Seatruck, following negotiations with the International Transport Federation.

Meanwhile, Department of Transport inspectors have detained the vessel in Dublin Port for not keeping adequate records of hours worked by the crew and for having defective equipment on board.