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2017-2021 · Umm Al Quwain anchorage, UAE · status: resolved
The Panama-flagged product tanker Iba was abandoned by Falcon Maritime with four Indian seafarers on board at Umm Al Quwain anchorage, UAE, in September 2017. Wages had stopped in 2016. The crew remained on board for over three and a half years — one of the longest documented abandonment cases in the IMO/ILO joint database. The seafarers survived on charity food deliveries and eventually left the vessel after a monsoon caused Iba to run aground on Umm Al Quwain beach in January 2021. The case received sustained international coverage and prompted UAE authorities to expedite crew repatriation. The Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi + ITF secured a portion of unpaid wages via arrest of the vessel and its subsequent judicial sale.
repatriated after 3.5+ years; partial wage recovery via vessel sale.
Resolution / documentation via: ITF + Indian Embassy Abu Dhabi