Off the coast of Otago, a man from the UK-registered Berge Rishiri is believed to be missing at sea.
According to a statement issued today by Maritime NZ, the man, a Chinese national, was last seen on Saturday at 8 a. m., when he finished his shift on board the ship.
On Saturday at 4 p.m., he did not arrive for work.
According to a statement from Maritime New Zealand, the crew finished their search of the ship and then headed back along its course to check the water for any signs of the missing person.
Along the Otago shore, a comprehensive search was also conducted by an Otago Rescue Helicopter and a nearby vessel.
The search has been suspended until the completion of a thorough assessment to determine the chances of future search operations being successful.
This kind of incident occurs more frequently than many people realise, according to Maritime Union of New Zealand National Secretary Craig Harrison, who also noted that the death of a crew member overboard on a bulk carrier is particularly upsetting.
He thinks New Zealand needs to do more to ensure the safety of international crews sailing in its waters.
Harrison asked Maritime New Zealand to make sure the crew was getting enough sleep and that they were free to sail without having to secure any goods.
He claimed that rather than having shore-based stevedores perform the operation in port, certain low-standard New Zealand stevedores frequently hire foreign seamen to whip items while the vessel is in motion.
He said it was also important to consider the crew members’ sea time.
As we have seen significant mental health issues with seafarers who were essentially held captive on vessels for months, if not years, we would like to know how long the seafarer had been at sea and on duty and we would like assurances that they were not kept on the vessel longer than their contracted period.
Harrison said that the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) and the Maritime Union would appreciate the opportunity to speak with the crew and learn about their well-being as well as what the cargo owners and shipping company are doing to support the crew and family of the missing seafarer.
He urged New Zealand officials to look into the incident thoroughly.
Approximately 400,000 seafarers are employed on cargo ships worldwide.
Official statistics show that between 2015 and 2019, 509 persons went missing and 527 died at sea.
Man allegedly overboarded from a ship off the coast of Otago.
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