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Lagunero - Mexico - 1 March 2026 -  unresolved 

Left

Lagunero
 unresolved 
01711
Mexico: flag image Mexico
9761736
Diving Support Vessel
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
British Marine

Right

1 March 2026
7 May 2026
International Transport Workers' Federation
28
Mexico (28)

Circumstances

Outstanding wages between 4 and 5 months

Seafarers applied to insurer?: No
Insurance certificate dates: 20th April 2026 to 20th April 2027

Case details

12 April 2026: Flag State informed
Contacted the owners, managers, flag state, Mexican embassy, Mexican consulate, charterer, PSC and Brazil labour authority
7 May 2026: Repatriation pending

7 May 2026: Payment Pending
Outstanding wages:
US$565,026

Comments and observations

19 June 2026: Brazil
(From the Ministry of Labour and Employment)

INSPECTION REPORT – ABANDONMENT OF THE CREW OF THE LAGUNERO AND PUERTO REAL

1. INTRODUCTION:
This report was prepared to fulfil a request for information from the Brazilian Maritime Authority, comprehensively presenting the context, history, and current situation of the abandonment of seafarers on the ships LAGUNERO (IMO 9761736) and PUERTO REAL (IMO 9761748), as well as the measures taken to date by the Labor Inspection and other Brazilian authorities, in order to support the demand of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Below is information on the companies involved in the two cases of abandonment, a chronological list of the measures taken and the relevant documents attached.

2. COMPANY INFORMATION:
a) MARINSA DE MEXICO S.A. DE C.V. (SHIP OWNER):
Address as stated in the Ship’s Information: Av. Adolfo López Mateos 179, Pto Industrial Pesquero Laguna Azul, Ciudad del Carmen, Campeche, 24170/24140, Mexico.
Address as stated in the P&I: Av. Adolfo López Mateos No. 179, Puerto Ind. Pesquero Laguna Azul, Ciudad del Carmen, Campeche, Postcode 24140.
Emails:***
b) INTERNAV NAVEGAÇÃO LTDA (VESSEL OPERATOR):
CNPJ: 08.393.278/0001-31.
Address: Rua México, no. 21, Room 1502 – Centro – Rio de Janeiro/RJ.
Operations Coordinator: ***
Email:***
c) BRITISH MARINE – QBE EUROPE SA/NV (INSURER)
Trading name: BRITISH MARINE
Address: Bastion Tower, Place du Champ de Mars 5 – 1050 Brussels – Belgium
Email: ***

3. LIST OF ACTIONS IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER

On 9 April 2026, Mr ***, Director of SINDMAR (National Union of Merchant Navy Officers), submitted a complaint by email reporting poor conditions on board the vessel LAGUNERO (IMO No. 9761736), flying the Mexican flag, moored at the RENAVE shipyard, situated on Ilha do Viana, s/n, Barreto, with access via Av. Governador Roberto Silveira, No. 674, Niterói/RJ. Among the irregularities highlighted were delays in the payment of wages, a shortage of food supplies and a lack of drinking water.
On 10 April 2026, the Rio de Janeiro Regional Port and Waterway Labour Inspection Unit (URITPA-RJ), represented by Labour Inspectors *** and ***, carried out an inspection on board the vessel. The inspection involved interviews with crew members, a survey of the facilities and a request for the submission of documents. During the inspection, it was found that the living conditions and accommodation on board were satisfactory. However, it was established that there were delays in the payment of crew wages.
On 14 April 2026, Labour Inspectors ***, *** and *** returned to the vessel and conducted interviews with all crew members on board. Based on an analysis of the documentation available on board, corroborated by information provided by the captain and the crew, it was established that the last payment of wages had been made on 16 January 2026. It was thus established that the entire crew had not been paid for approximately 90 days, with outstanding wage arrears amounting to MXN 9,553,484.10, calculated up to 10 April 2026.
In these circumstances, the situation was recognised as one of ABANDONMENT of the crew on board the vessel LAGUNERO, IMO 9761736, by the shipowner, in accordance with the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006).
On 27 April 2026, the Brazilian Labour Inspectorate sent a communication to the Competent Authority for the Maritime Labour Convention in Mexico requesting information regarding the measures to be taken in relation to the abandonment of the crew on board the vessel LAGUNERO. On the same date, the master of the vessel PUERTO REAL, which also belongs to the same shipowner as the LAGUNERO, informed the Mexican Authority that the crew members of that vessel remained in a state of abandonment.
On 28 April 2026, a letter was sent to QBE EUROPE S.A., which operates under the trade name BRITISH MARINE, informing them that the crew members of the vessel LAGUNERO had been abandoned by the shipowner.
On the same date, BRITISH MARINE replied to the letter, stating that it was closely monitoring developments in the case with the shipowner.
On 4 May 2026, the Labour Inspectorate requested that BRITISH MARINE submit a plan to resolve the situation of the crew members of the vessel LAGUNERO. On the same date, the Labour Inspectorate received a complaint reporting a deterioration in conditions on board the vessel PUERTO REAL (IMO No. 9761748), which was also linked to the same shipowner. According to the complaint, the vessel had run out of diesel fuel, a situation which compromised the electricity supply; there was also a shortage of food and drinking water, and delays in the payment of the crew’s wages. Given the seriousness of the complaint, the Labour Inspectorate, in coordination with the Federal Police Station at the Port of Rio de Janeiro – which provided the necessary means to gain access to the vessel, anchored in Guanabara Bay – carried out
On 5 May 2026, an inspection on board the vessel. The inspection was carried out by Labour Inspectors *** and ***, accompanied by Federal Police officers ***, *** and ***.
The inspection began with interviews with the crew; an inspection of the vessel’s facilities and living conditions; and the issuance of a notice requiring the presentation of documents, including the Crew List, certificates required by the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), 2006, the Temporary Registration Certificate (AIT) and other relevant documents.

4. INSPECTION RESULTS

During the inspection, the following irregularities and critical conditions were identified:
• compromised living conditions due to a lack of diesel fuel, resulting in the electricity supply being limited to only a few essential pieces of equipment;
• availability of only 50 (fifty) litres of drinking water for a total of 14 (fourteen) people, comprising 11 (eleven) Mexican crew members and 3 (three) Brazilian workers employed by the catering company;
• an imminent risk of food shortages, given that, although existing supplies were sufficient for approximately 2 (two) weeks, the catering company would cease providing services in 2 (two) days, with the unloading of food supplies scheduled; and
• wage arrears of at least 90 (ninety) days for the Mexican crew members, constituting a serious breach of the shipowner’s obligations.

5. MEASURES TAKEN

During the on-board inspection, telephone contact was made with Mr ***, the representative of MARINSA DE MÉXICO S.A. in Brazil, at which time the Labour Inspectors ordered the immediate adoption of the necessary measures to ensure that the workers did not remain in a situation of deprivation and vulnerability.
Furthermore, the manager of the catering company BREEZE SERVICES was reminded that food supplies could not be removed from the vessel, given the need to ensure the crew’s subsistence.
On 6 May 2026, the Brazilian Labour Inspectorate sent a communication to the Competent Authority for the Maritime Labour Convention in Mexico requesting an update on the measures to be taken to resolve the situation of abandonment of the crews of the
vessels LAGUNERO and PUERTO REAL. On the same date, representatives of the vessel PUERTO REAL also sent a communication to the Mexican Authority reporting that the vessel’s crew remained in a state of abandonment by the shipowner.
On 9 May 2026, the Brazilian Public Prosecutor’s Office for Labour Matters brought legal proceedings requiring the shipowner and the insurer to take steps to ensure the payment of wages and the repatriation of the seafarers.
On 13 May 2026, a court ruling was handed down ordering the shipowner and the insurer of the vessels LAGUNERO and PUERTO REAL to ensure that the vessels were fully resupplied with drinking water, food and fuel for the generators, in quantities sufficient to sustain the crew for a minimum period of 30 (thirty) days.
On 28 May 2026, the Labour Inspectorate sent a communication to the Competent Authority under Mexico’s Maritime Labour Convention requesting an update on the measures taken, or to be taken, to resolve the situation of abandonment of the crews of the vessels LAGUNERO and PUERTO REAL.
On 29 May 2026, Mr ***, Captain of the vessel LAGUNERO, sent a communication stating that the vessel was about to completely exhaust its fuel reserves, which would significantly exacerbate the situation of abandonment previously reported.
Despite repeated requests and notifications previously sent to the company, MARINSA has not responded nor taken the necessary steps to supply fuel to maintain minimum conditions of habitability, subsistence and safety on board.
The depletion of fuel reserves would render the vessel uninhabitable, resulting, amongst other things, in the following consequences:
• interruption of systems of cooling systems, compromising the proper preservation of food supplies;
• unavailability of essential safety equipment, including fire pumps;
• disruption to drinking water supply systems and sanitation facilities;
• inability to prepare meals for the crew;
• lack of air conditioning and adequate ventilation in the accommodation areas; and
• loss of the vessel’s communication systems.

This situation constituted an imminent emergency, with the potential to jeopardise the health, safety and well-being of all crew members remaining on board.
On 9 June 2026, the Mexican Embassy requested that MARINSA and BRITISH MARINE take measures to assist the crew, in view of the critical situation facing the vessel.
On the same date, the Labour Inspectorate sent a communication to the Competent Authority under the Maritime Labour Convention in Mexico, informing them of the critical situation arising from the imminent depletion of the LAGUNERO’s fuel reserves.
Finally, on 15 June 2026, BRITISH MARINE arranged for the LAGUNERO to be refuelled and began paying the crew’s outstanding wages, corresponding to approximately 120 (one hundred and twenty) days. As shown in the spreadsheet below, the rows highlighted in green correspond to the wages already paid.
The crew of the PUERTO REAL, meanwhile, are still awaiting a resolution to their situation and are being supported by the Labour Inspectorate.

6. CONCLUSION

As a result of the measures adopted by the Brazilian authorities to resolve both cases, the crew members of the ship LAGUNERO have started receiving their back wages and are being repatriated.
The competent authorities continue to monitor the situation of the crew of the vessel PUERTO REAL on an ongoing basis, with a view to taking the necessary steps to resolve the case.

This concludes the report.