Treat crew on S'pore-flagged ship in US bridge collapse fairly: Unions

Visa restrictions, ongoing probes prevent 21 on board from disembarking

- Kang Wan Chern

Two Singapore seafarer unions are working to ensure that crew members trapped on a container ship that lost power and knocked down Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge are safe and treated fairly.

MV Dali's crew have not left the Singapore-flagged ship since the accident on March 23, even remaining on board on May 13 as dozens of small explosives placed around a section of the bridge that had fallen on the ship's bow were set off.

Mr Gwee Guo Duan, assistant general secretary of the Singapore Maritime Officers' Union (SMOU), told The Straits Times that the crew members are safe and well.

He said the SMOU is working with its counterparts in the United States to obtain permission for the 21 crew members to temporarily leave the ship.

"The mental stress from being stuck on the ship for so many days is quite high, so we are working on getting shore leave for the crew, so that they can leave the ship for a few hours," added Mr Gwee.

The crew 20 Indian nationals and one Sri Lankan - have been unable to disembark because of visa restrictions, a lack of required shore passes and parallel ongoing investigations by the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).