site.btaTzarevna Bulk Carrier Back Home after Nine Months in Ukraine

The Tzarevna bulk carrier is back in Bulgaria's Black Sea port of Varna after being stranded in the Ukrainian port of Mariupol for nine months.

The Bulgarian captain, Pavel Pavlov, said on Wednesday: "It was a warlike situation, hard to imagine if you have not been through it. These are extreme experiences which defy human understanding. It is impossible to explain how one feels with bombs falling 20 metres away and incessant shooting in the port." Pavlov said there were bullet holes on the ship which did not affect its seaworthiness. During shootings, the crew hid in the engine room.

The captain said the ship's communication with the Varna office was uninterrupted. The Bulgarians had no problems with the Ukrainian and the Russian authorities. The Tzarevna was in contact with the other ships in the port and they helped one another.

The ship is going in for repairs in Varna, said Overseas Maritime manager Nikolay Stefanov. Afterwards it will be operating in a different area.

The shipowner's representative, Daniel Stefanov, thanked the crew for their courage in a very difficult situation. "The company is yet to count its losses but this is money - you win some and lose some, the important thing is that there were no casualties," he said.

The two Ukrainian crew members who were aboard the ship will be offered jobs in Varna if they want them, Stefanov added.

He recalled that Bulgaria's Foreign Ministry was involved in creating a safe corridor for the ship to leave Ukrainian waters.

The Tzarevna left Mariupol on November 10. Fourteen Bulgarian and one Ukrainian crew members were evacuated on April 18. Three Bulgarian and two Ukrainian crew members, including the captain, chose to stay behind.