Caught in the crossfire – story of a shipmaster in the Strait of Hormuz

© Rudall30

A fascinating interview by Nautilus with a tanker captain about transiting the Strait of Hormuz, a “stressful” and “scary” experience. One of the issues that leaps from the page is the risk to crews – and how poorly compensated they are for that. Shipping lines may be introducing war-risk surcharges, but crews are certainly not seeing any extra ‘danger’ money. Nor have they been asked whether they want to continue onboard. But, there again, they are afraid, said the captain, of being ‘blacklisted’ – which is of course forbidden. The tension is exacerbated by the requirement to put razor wire around the deck areas and deploy water cannon for protection against illegal boarding. And there is more paperwork. The un-named captain concludes: “Given a choice, I would not sail onboard a vessel transiting the Arabian Gulf or the Strait of Hormuz at this time.”