Bangladesh crew evacuated, ship at Ukraine port abandoned

The Bangladesh Embassy in Poland on Thursday night evacuated 28 crew members of the bulk carrier that had been stranded at the port of Olvia in Ukraine, said a Shipping Corporation official.

"The ship has been declared abandoned and all 28 mariners have left the vessel Banglar Samriddhi. They have been taken to a safe zone by tugboats," Pijush Dutta, executive director (Commercial) of the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, told The Business Standard at 8:45pm Thursday.

In a separate development, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam said the seamen are now safe. They will be taken to the Bangladesh Embassy in Poland and sent home subsequently.

Salman Sami, a sailor of the ship, told TBS over the phone that the body of Hadisur Rahman – a third engineer of the ship who died in a shelling on Wednesday night – was also recovered and sent to the morgue.

On declaring the ship abandoned, Pijush Dutta said the shelling severely damaged the vessel and it is not possible to determine whether it could be put into operation again without running the carrier.

"For now, we are leaving it at the port," he added.

Salman Sami said the bombing damaged their food storage, forcing the authorities for an immediate evacuation.

The bulk carrier owned by the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation reached the port of Olvia on 22 February as it was scheduled to carry ceramic raw material from Ukraine to Italy. On 24 February, Russia attacked Ukraine leading to the ship being stranded at the port.

On the night of 2 March, a shell struck the vessel, destroying the bridge of the ship where Hadisur was on duty. "The shelling caused a massive fire," Capt Md Anam Chowdhury, president of the Bangladesh Merchant Marine Officers' Association, told TBS.

According to one of the mariners TBS talked to on Thursday, the ship was using its emergency power supply.

According to Ukrainian news agency Kurds Global, two tugboats approached the bulk carrier after the Wednesday attack. But the Banglar Samriddhi captain did not allow the crew to leave the vessel.

Safety got the highest priority

Pijush Dutta said the authorities were aware of the panicky situation on the vessel, but stuck to "safety first" of the sailors prior to initiating the evacuation.

Echoing the same on safety and security of the mariners, State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury said the prime minister was concerned, and she had instructed that coordinated evacuation arrangements be made.

The state minister referred to diplomatic efforts that ultimately led to the rescue.

"A commercial vessel was not supposed to be attacked. But it went wrong for us," he added.

The Embassy of the Russian Federation in Dhaka Thursday mourned the death of sailor Hadisur Rahman. In a press release, the embassy said Russia would make every effort to ensure the safe departure of Bangladeshi ships from the port.

The media release said the Russian defence ministry has launched a hotline to facilitate evacuation of civilians from Ukraine. Russia in the statement accused Ukraine of using the stranded people as "human shields".

Tension and tears

Hadisur's family was looking for a match for him to get married once he returned. But fate was not kind to them – cheers turned to tears the moment news of his tragic death reached.

The pall of gloom descended on Hadisur's house in Barguna – there was a heart-rending scene as the grief-stricken family members could not control their emotions and were wailing inconsolably for their loved one.

The 29-year-old engineer talked to his younger brother Golam Mawla Prince just hours before he met with the tragic death.

"I could not hear clearly what he told me but I overheard sounds of multiple explosions," Golam Mawla recounted.

Last time Hadisur, who had been working in different ships for the last eight years, came home was six months ago. "But he [Hadisur] would talk to us over the phone," he said.

Breaking down into tears, Amena Begum, mother of Hadisur, said, "I talked to my son on Wednesday night through a video call. I cannot believe that he is no more."

"We are searching for a bride to marry him off after he returns. But all our dreams centering him have now shattered," Amena said as she was choked with emotion.

The family now waits for Hadisur's body. State Minister Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury said the body will be brought home, but the process depends on the situation of the war. He assured that the government would stand by Hadisur's family.

The family of another sailor Syed Asiful Islam – a second engineer of the vessel – Thursday also asked the authorities to arrange an immediate evacuation for the mariners.

Asif's father Syed Nurul Islam – a retired railway official – on Thursday arranged an especial prayer at the local mosque, while the mother spent the day praying at home for the safe return of his son. Asif's tensed wife and baby daughter were also in the gruelling wait.

Nurul Islam said they had talked to Asif Thursday, and he said he was fine.

Could the vessel avert the situation?

Former sailors say Banglar Samriddhi had enough time to leave the Ukrainian port even after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But it did not, possibly due to "commercial pressure".

According to the global ship tracking website Marine Traffic, there were 24 ships at the port of Olvia at 3pm [Bangladesh time] on 27 February. At 4pm on Thursday, only 8 ships were anchored there. Even a ship that was just at the south side of the Bangladeshi ship on 27 February was not found there on Thursday.

Questions arise as to why the Bangladeshi vessel could not leave the port while the other ships did.

Captain Abdullah al Mahmud, an expert mariner, said, "The reason for not leaving the port may be 'commercial pressure'. Maybe there were some cargoes on the ship that had to be unloaded and the ship was waiting for that to be done. Or the captain might have been hoping that the situation would get better."

Pijush Dutta, executive director (Commercial) of the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, said the authorities had thought the situation would get better as there had been talks between Russia and Ukraine.

"We had planned for the evacuation to get underway once the situation calmed down," he added.

Captain Abdullah al Mahmud believes the exact reason as to why the ship did not leave the port will remain unknown.

"The captain or management will now keep the matter a secret," he said, adding, "A ship usually does not leave port until its commercial purpose is met. Otherwise, there is no scope for a ship to make an unusual delay at any port."

[The Business Standard Barguna and Brahmanbaria correspondents contributed to the report]