AM DELTA

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Five seafarers abducted in attack off Brass

The 'AM Delta', enroute from Douala to Takoradi, was raided in the early hours of Nov 16, 2020, 44 nautical miles south of Brass. The vessel was boarded by six or seven gunmen who took five crew members as hostages. The abducted crew members were Ghanaian. The pirates are reported to have damaged communications and navigation equipment. The ship was drifting with two crew members on board. The attack was the ninth in November alone, with 115 seafarers kidnapped in the region so far this year.

Torrent due to set sail

The "Torrent" which has been stranded at Rye for more than a year was finally due to set sail end of February 2014. A company has now bought the vessel, which has been moored at the commercial jetty in Rye Harbour since Jan 2013 on the orders of the Admiralty for commercial reasons. The Russian captain and five Ukrainian crew members stayed with the impounded ship unpaid for several months and were helped by a Rye Lions appeal which provided them with food and other essentials. The Torrent was carrying a cargo of roadstone. In February 2013 Captain Moseev said that he and his crew have not been paid any wages since October 2012 and then only a partial payment was received. The ship’s owner was reported to have debts in excess of £1 million for the costs of fuel and general running of the fleet. Report with photo: http://www.ryeandbattleobserver.co.uk/news/local/russian-ship-finally-sets-sail-1-5897736

Crew of detained ship free to leave

The crew of the "Torrent" which remains detained in Sussex can leave at any time according to the vessel's owner. The ship was arrested in January 2013 off Rye after owner Independent Shipping stopped trading for the time being. The crew said then they were destitute and could not go home. The firm has now said the men had been paid to February and would be paid in full, but the crew wanted accounts settled before leaving. The captain said the crew were awaiting instructions from the ship's owners. There are currently five Russian and Ukrainian men on board the cargo freighter - the captain, an engineer and three seamen. A sixth crew member was sent home by the owners because his wife was ill. The firm said it had given the men provisions, fuel and water, but the crew have also had food supplies from local charity Rye and District Lions Club. However, a minimum crew was needed to keep any ship operational, which was the captain and engineers, and the ship had to be manned to a degree in accordance with Rye Harbour byelaws. The crew were currently earning wages for ship husbandry, and this was the same rate they would receive for ship trading. Bruce Hayley, a maritime law expert, said the Crew could make arrangements to go home but may face complications at the airport, which could be overcome.