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Court to Weigh Fate of Vessel Stranded in Foreclosure Off Coast of Georgia

A hearing in federal court in Georgia on Monday will likely decide the fate of a bulk carrier floating off the Atlantic coast since April when a maritime foreclosure left the vessel and its Filipino crew in a watery limbo. The NewLead Castellano, ferrying 24,000 metric tons of sugar from Singapore, was headed for the Port of Savannah this spring when it was seized by U.S. Marshals at the behest of offshore creditors of the ship’s Greece-based owner. For nearly four months, the Liberian-flagged vessel has been stranded 3 miles from Tybee Island near Savannah, Ga., while a legal battle triggered by a mortgage default played out in court. The sugar was unloaded months ago, and a handful of Greek crewmen were able to fly home. But a bare-bones crew of seafarers—13 Filipino officers and crewmen, a Romanian electrician and a Greek second engineer—has been stuck on board ever since, unable to disembark because they lacked visas to enter the U.S. The crew, according to creditor lawyers, has killed time playing cards, surfing the internet and fishing off the deck of the red ship. They have relied on shipments of beef, lamb, ginger, celery, lemon grass and cabbage delivered to them on a launch boat. A local Catholic priest has also visited the vessel to hear confessions and offer Mass. http://www.wsj.com/articles/court-to-weigh-fate-of-vessel-stranded-in-foreclosure-off-coast-of-georgia-1471080602

Ship auctioned, crew going home

The legal battle over debts which has left the "Newlead Castellano" and its 15-member crew stuck off the coast of Georgia for nearly four months is over. The ship was sold at auction on Aug 8, 2016. U.S. marshals had seized the "Newlead Castellano" in mid-April after it sailed into Savannah to offload a shipment of imported sugar. A judge ordered the ship idled while creditors sued the ship’s owner, saying they were owed $7.1 million. That left the crew of mostly Filipino sailors confined to the vessel because they lacked visas allowing them to come ashore. The Philippino crew may now be repatriated.

Debt fight leaves unpaid crew stuck for months on ship off Georgia

AVANNAH, Ga. — The crew of the Newlead Castellano already had reason to complain, having not been paid for roughly two months when the cargo ship sailed into Savannah to offload a shipment of imported sugar. Then U.S. marshals seized the 590-foot ship, forcing it to drop anchor off the Georgia coast and wait out a legal dispute between the vessel's owners and their creditors. Nearly four months have passed and 15 crew members remain stuck on board a few miles out to sea, within view of the beach sands of Tybee Island but legally prohibited from setting foot on land because they are foreign nationals with limited visas. "It's fairly calm, a little boring," said Alan Swimmer, president of National Maritime Services, whose job is to secure the ship and care for its crew as a court-appointed custodian. "There are some standard watches they have to perform, whether the ship is operating or not. So they're performing daily duties, probably doing a little bit of fishing in between." The crew, all Filipinos save for a Greek engineer and a Romania electrician, got caught in the middle of a legal battle after the Newlead Castellano's owner, Newlead Holdings of Greece, fell behind on its debt payments. Four creditors who loaned the owner cash to buy the ship filed suit April 19 in U.S. District Court, saying they were owed $7.1 million. A judge ordered federal marshals to seize the ship before it left Savannah. And days spent idle at sea turned into months. Report with photo: http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2016/aug/10/debt-fight-leaves-unpaid-crew-stuck-months-ship-georgia/380453/