The seafarers of Banglar Samriddhi, the Bangladeshi ship damaged in a deadly shelling amid the Ukraine-Russia war, are likely to leave Romania for home on Tuesday.
“We’re trying to repatriate 28 of them together, but haven’t received all the air tickets yet,” said M Daud Ali, Bangladesh ambassador to Romania. “It is quite difficult to arrange so many air tickets under the circumstances, but we’re trying our best to ensure they start today [Tuesday].
”Three days after they were rescued from the ship, the crew members crossed the Moldova border into Romania and stayed in a hotel in Bucharest, reports bdnews24.com.
The authorities have booked their tickets on a Turkish Airlines flight and will finalise the trip after the tickets are confirmed, the ambassador said.
BSC Director General Captain Mujibur Rahman said the crew members will leave Bucharest at 10 pm local time and reach Dhaka at 1 pm local time on Wednesday.
The bulk carrier had arrived in Ukraine on Feb 22. Russia launched full-fledged assaults on Ukraine on Feb 24.
A missile struck the vessel, owned by Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, on Mar 2, killing one of the crew members on board.
Following the attack that killed their colleague, the remaining sailors and engineers left the vessel, declaring it abandoned.