The crew of a ship anchored off Canada’s west coast have received donations of food, supplies and gifts to help make their Christmas merry. The sixteen crew members hail from South Korea and the Philippines. They are stuck on the 255-metre-long container ship Hanjin Scarlet anchored about 70 km from Victoria.
The ship has been there for more than three months after the shipping company Hanjin filed for bankruptcy. Crew members are still being paid but say they need to keep their jobs and don’t want to spend money on shore.
Supplies for roast pig dinner too
Maritime labour groups and the Filipino community rallied and collected more than a tonne of goods for them including a Christmas tree, a pig and the coals to roast it for Christmas dinner.
Crew members were delighted to unload the goods. They are not sure when they will be able to go home, but they have access to the internet and are able to communicate with friends and family.
“It’s lonely,” sailor Romeo Cabacang told Canadian Press. “But all the crew, we are very happy for the early Christmas gift. We are very happy.”
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