Hard luck Elbeik

Port of Tarragona

Having settled in Tarragona for the winter carrying out maintenance I went one evening onto the breakwater for a hike, the back and forth from the marina to the end and back gives you a 8km+ loop. It is a bit boring as it is mostly a straight trek along the breakwater to entrance of the port of Tarragona and back but it is easy and does the trick when you need the exercise. 

For those that did not know, Tarragona is the deepest natural port in Spain and was known to the ancient Phoenicians and later the Romans that called it Tarraco in Latin. The port still sees plenty of traffic and goods of all sorts pass through. At the end of the port is a large yacht marina, Marina Tarraco, that is entered through the merchant port and a bascule bridge. The marina is very sheltered during the winter storms except that some swell sometimes rolls in when it blows into the port. There is also dust from the bulk terminals that blow in the marina at these times. Luckily there is no more coal shipped here so the area is definitely cleaner.

m/v Elbeik in the distance and the breakwater

So, to go back at my trek I saw this burned out vessel alongside and snapped some photos of it and didn't think much of it. Little did I know she had been part of some drama a few years back. Then autumn of 2024 when I came back to Tarragona she was gone and when I asked the pilot what happened to her he said that someone did her up and sailed her away (or towed her?). I had to look a bit more in her history...

m/v Elbeik

IMO number: 6718427
Vessel Name: Elbeik

Ex names: Delta 1, Aljaghbeir I, Al Mahmoud 4, Abdulrazak, Jihad II, Tyro

Built: Ordered 1 Apr 1966, completed 10/1967

Yard: Krimpen a/d Ijssel (Netherlands) by Van der Giessen-de Noord

Flag: Togo

Class: Bureau Veritas

Ship Type: Livestock Carrier, originally palletised general cargo
Flag: Togo
LOA: 84.20 m
LBP: 77.00 m
Beam: 14.30 m
Depth: 9.70 m
Draft: 4.5 m
Gross Tonnage: 2867

TDW: 1,459
Engine: MWM x 2, TBRHS345S, 2206 kW

Event: 2021-08-06 Fire in accommodation

Burned out superstructure

Her short history until her demise

In March 2018 she was banned from entering the Paris MOU (basically EU) area but the ban was lifted a week later.

In March 2021 she was caught in limbo crisscrossing the Mediterranean for about 3 months with a cargo of Spanish livestock onboard that in the end had to be destroyed with fears of disease and dehydrated animals. The Guardian and Robin des Bois document their odyssey from the period.

In Aug 2021 when waiting for new cargo she had a fire in her accommodation that eventually put paid to her trading. Maritime Executive has a good write up on the incident and a picture of her burning.

In September 2022 Port of Tarragona officially declared the Elbeik as "abandoned" and in Oct 2022 the Port Authority of Tarragona follows up with the declaration and puts her up for sale by auction.

Screenshot of the declaration

In Nov 2022 the German Animal Welfare Organisation issued a statement they would see that the Elbeik never trades again and that they'll follow closely on her developments. Well, Elbeik left EU to Turkey after her auction.

July 2024 Robin des Bois reports that Elbeik has been towed to Turkey (for scrapping?) in his Shipbreaking bulletin no 71, dated July 2024. They do not state exactly that she was demolished in Turkey but I am assuming she was, why else would she had gone there? Her AIS has been dead since the fire so I doubt she was refitted.

Robin des Bois, no 71 issue, 2024

Indeed she was scrapped, proof from the picture by Selim San posted by Erem Topcu in Oct 2024 (FB).

Elbeik in Aliaga meeting her fate.

Having had a look on Equasis I can see that Elbeik has kept the Port State control boys very busy, she has a total of 31 inspections from 2009 - 2021. Her last inspection was in Piraeus, Greece in July 2021, just after her Mediterranean odyssey it seems and she had 7 deficiencies reported which seems to be pretty good for her standard.

1. Emergency Systems: Emergency fire pump
2. Emergency Systems: Muster list 
3. MLC, 2006 Health protection, medical care, social security: Guards/ fencing around dangerous machinery parts
4. Safety of Navigation: Life-saving signals 
5. Safety of Navigation: Nautical publications
6. Safety of Navigation: Pilot ladders
7. Water/Weathertight conditions: Doors

In Cartagena, 2020

Credit: Rutger Hofma (marinetraffic)

From her Equasis history I can see that she was detained a total of 6 times between 2013 and 2020. That's almost once a year, the office must have gotten used to those reports by then. Her last detention was in Koper, Slovenia in Jan 2020 with following 23 deficiencies.

Certificate & Documentation: Crew Certificates Doc evidence for personnel on passenger ships 1
Certificate & Documentation: Documents Oil record book 1
Certificate & Documentation: Documents Records of rest 1
Certificate & Documentation: Documents Schedules for watchkeeping personnel 1
Fire safety: Fire fighting equipment and appliances 1
Fire safety: Jacketed high pressure lines and oil leakage alarm 
MLC, 2006 Accommodation, recreational facilities, food and catering: Hospital accomodation (Sickbay)
MLC, 2006 Accommodation, recreational facilities, food and catering: Sanitary Facilities
MLC, 2006 Health protection, medical care, social security: Personal equipment
MLC, 2006 Health protection, medical care, social security: Protection machines/parts
MLC, 2006 Health protection, medical care, social security: Ropes Wires 
Radio Communications: MH/HF radio installation
Radio Communications: VHF radio installation
Safety of Navigation: Bridge operation
Safety of Navigation: Lights, shapes and sound signal
Safety of Navigation: Magnetic compass
Safety of Navigation: Navigation bridge visibility
Water/Weathertight conditions: Windows side scuttles (x2)

Then the 3 grounds for detention:

Certificate & Documentation: Documents Records of rest, false 
ISM ISM, related deficiencies: Not as required 
Structural Conditions: Beams frames floors corrosion, cracked 

Before her conversion to livestock carrier

Credit: John English 2015 (shipspotting)

Then the crowning record on her track is in March 2017 with a whopping 90 days in Alexandria, Egypt with a total of 27 deficiencies and detention, but the student did not learn, she was still naughty as we can see. I wonder what the DPA of Rana Maritime Services took in the mornings to cope with these incidents...

Certificates & Documentation: Certificate for medical first aid 
Certificates & Documentation: Endorsement by flagstate 
Certificates & Documentation: Oil record book 
Certificates & Documentation: Signs Indications 
Emergency Systems Emergency: Lighting Batteries and Switches 
Fire safety: Fire control plan 
Labour Conditions: Other (Minimum requirements)
Life saving appliances: Means of recovery of lifesaving appliances
Pollution Prevention: Other (Marpol annex I)
Propulsion and auxiliary machinery: Bilge pumping arrangements
Structural Conditions: Deck Corrosion
Structural Conditions: Hull Corrosion 

Structural Conditions: Steering Gear x 2
Water/Weathertight conditions: Doors
Water/Weathertight conditions: Freeboard marks
Water/Weathertight conditions: Ventilators air pipes ceasing
Working and Living Conditions: Gas instruments
Working and Living Conditions: Pipes Wires (Insulation)
Working and Living Conditions: Ropes Wires
Working and Living Conditions: Winches and Capstans

Then the grounds of detention and I am surprised they even let her depart:

Emergency Systems Emergency fire pump: Not as required 
Life saving appliances: Lifebuoys Not working 
Pollution Prevention: AFS documentation Missing 
Propulsion and auxiliary machinery: Auxiliary Engine Leaking, not working 2
Structural Conditions: Hull damage impairing seaworthiness, damaged

As Tyro in original shape

Credit: John sins "from the collection of O.E.A. Hetebrij" (shipspotting)

In regards of livestock carriers I have earlier written that they are usually older vessels converted to this trade at the end of their lifecycle. They fly dubious flags and certificates, the work is hard, crew maybe not even trained and I think also the loss of cargo must be considerable. After my June 2022 visit in port Sawakin, Sudan only 2 weeks after there was capsize of a livestock carrier that killed thousands of animals. Robin des Bois has also picked up on these discrepancies and reports on the issue 'as the most dangerous ships of the world'. 

Tarragona lighthouse

In the end it was (and is) the Owner's responsibility to provide the vessel and crew with the necessary means of spares and tools to maintain the vessel in a timely manner, likewise I think the Paris MOU has been very lax about vessels like this and not banned them from further trading in EU waters. This could have sped up the process for getting them to the shipbreakers beach for recycling...