Stranded crew going home

A cargo ship stranded in Auckland for a month after being arrested by court officials, is set to be sold and its Myanmar crew will get to go home.

The Annapurna was arrested on its arrival in Auckland from Chile on August 1 on a warrant issued by the High Court after an application by Tokyo-based Aozora Bank.

It has been berthed at Auckland's Bledisloe Wharf since. The 23 crew members, who lost a fellow crew member overboard on the voyage from Chile, have been helped out by the Maritime Union while they wait for money and a trip home.

Aozora Bank has a mortgage over the ship, owned by New York company Eastwind Maritime which has gone into bankruptcy.

Geoff Fraser, a broker appointed by the High Court to deal with the ship's arrest, said progress had been made in the past two weeks.

"There is now an order for the boat to be sold," he said. "We haven't decided how it will be sold - that decision will be made at the end of the week."

Mr Fraser said the crew members were being paid and 13 of them would return home later this week. The other 10 will stay to prepare the boat for sale before heading home.

"I've been working with arrested boats for 15 years and they are the best crew I have ever worked with," Mr Fraser said.

The missing crew member disappeared on July 14, about four days after the vessel left Chile.

Police and Customs officials searched the boat when it arrived in New Zealand and were satisfied no foul play was involved.

Mr Breach said it appeared the boat had hit a rough patch of water and that the missing crewman, an assistant to the chef, had gone on deck during that time.

- NZPA