Seven crew members stuck on a Panama flag vessel, Ocean Explorer, asked to anchor at Mumbai High by the Port State Control, fear for their lives in the monsoon, as both engines of the ship don’t function. They are afraid the anchor chain may break and they will drift to the sea as they are unable to control the vessel. The Port State Control had directed the vessel be anchored after the on board crew members complained that they had not received salaries since November 2021, when the vessel first anchored due to two unwell crew members.

“Ocean Explorer is an Anchor Handling Tug Supply (AHTS) vessel. Both its main engines are lying non-operational for months and its other machinery has also broken down. The vessel is completely unseaworthy and poses a threat to human life onboard,” said Ravikumar Kaliveetil, the onboard chief engineer.