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Ship disabled by poisoned crew

On Feb 19, 2021, the 'April' requested urgent medical assistance due to a mass poisoning on board. The ship was enroute from Taganrog to Samsun. At the time of the emergency the ship was in the Azov Sea, approaching the Kerch Strait. The character of poisoning remained unknown. The MRCC Russia ordered the vessel to drop anchor in the Kerch Strait to evacuate the crew after talks with ship’s owner, who agreed with the decision and was fully cooperative. The evacuation was hampered by unfavourable weather, and the tug 'Merkuriy' was tasked to assist and arrived on scene at 1.30 p.m. As soon as the weather permits, the ship will be towed to Kavkaz. Six out of eight Turkish crew members have fallen ill, so the ship could no longer be safely manoevered by the crew. According to officials, food poisoning was a primary version, but not yet confirmed.