Banglar Joyjatra sails for Durban

Bangladeshi merchant ship Banglar Joyjatra has set sail for its new commercial destination at Port of Durban in South Africa after being stranded in the Strait of Hormuz for 115 days, reports bdnews24.com.

The vessel weighed anchor on Friday morning Bangladesh time, exactly three days after arriving at the UAE port of Fujairah, the ship's Captain Shafiqul Islam and Chief Engineer Rashedul Hasan said.

Rashedul said the ship had taken on fuel on Wednesday before successfully completing hull cleaning to remove marine growth from its underwater section.

As the vessel is due to pass waters off the Somali coast, four armed security guards are expected to board after it travels 252 nautical miles from Fujairah, the captain added. The guards will remain on board throughout the voyage to provide security.

According to the ship-tracking website MarineTraffic, the vessel was located near Oman's Sur port, close to the junction of the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, at 10:45am on Saturday.

Captain Shafiqul said the vessel is scheduled to reach Durban on Jul 12 if weather and sea conditions remain favourable.

It is currently transporting 37,500 tonnes of fertiliser, which was loaded at Saudi Arabia's Port of Ras Al Khair in the first week of April.

Because it was unable to transit the Strait of Hormuz, the ship spent nearly three months drifting across multiple ports in the Persian Gulf with the cargo.

After spending 115 days waiting to transit the strategic waterway, Banglar Joyjatra crossed the strait at around 3am Bangladesh time on Jun 23 and anchored at Fujairah Port in the UAE later that day.