The Hanjin Scarlet, Under Arrest and Under Way

The container vessel Hanjin Scarlet has been under arrest in Canada for some time, but on October 25, AIS tracking showed her under way once more – to her next port of arrest, Vancouver. 

International Transport Federation Canada's Peter Lahay told CBC Daybreak that the vessel, which has been stuck off of Prince Rupert for weeks, is now headed for the next port on its itinerary. The move appears well timed: Lahay said that the ship's 22 crewmembers had been running low on food and water at their anchorage and had not been resupplied for a month. Fresh food had long since expired. 

Prince Rupert Port Authority spokesman Michael Gurney told CBC that the Scarlet would offload its North American cargo at Vancouver. She was originally scheduled to proceed to Seattle before returning across the Pacific.

Canadian federal court records show four pending cases against the Scarlet, brought by Singamas Petroleum, Prince Rupert Port Authority, Pacific Pilotage Authority Canada and DP World Prince Rupert. Proceedings in the suit brought by DP World show that she remains under arrest, but that the court granted special leave to move the vessel to one specified location for unloading.

The Scarlet is not the collapsed carrier's only ship stuck in Canada. The Hanjin Vienna, which was arrested at Vancouver last month, remains at anchor off Victoria. Reports indicate that the Vienna's crew are being well cared for by the vessel's owners. 

Vessel arrests have slowed the lengthly process of unloading Hanjin's pre-bankruptcy cargoes. Most of its vessels have made port calls and discharged their loads, but several ships still carry BCOs' containers. The Hanjin Bremerhaven just unloaded in New York last week, more than a month later than scheduled, after escaping three successive arrests on its route from the Pacific to the Eastern Seaboard.