Family seeks answers over death onboard shadow tanker in China

The family of a dead Georgian seafarer is seeking answers from authorities in China.

Splash has seen shocking footage of the moment a seafarer died, covered head to toe in flames, and a Chinese yard worker was seriously injured after an explosion onboard during routine repairs at a yard in northern China. 

The incident happened onboard the 1999-built Eliak, an aframax owned by Indian interests with a history of carrying sanctioned oil.

The 25-year-old, Palau-flagged ship was at a yard in Dalian undergoing repairs when on April 25, while tests were underway for a hydraulic winch, an explosion occurred near to where Chinese repair staff had been carrying out hot work cutting some steel plate on deck.

Calls by the family of the deceased pumpman, Giorgi Tsilosani, to get Chinese, Georgian, or Palau authorities to investigate the accident have so far fallen on deaf ears. 

Akaki Tsilosani, the brother of the deceased, said the death was a direct result of the negligence of the ship’s crew and the unsafe working conditions aboard the vessel. 

“We urge authorities to conduct a thorough investigation and to implement stricter safety regulations to protect the lives of those working at sea,” Tsilosani told Splash. 

The ship is currently at anchor off Dalian. Shipping databases show it is owned by India’s Leuhan Maritime and that it has reflagged six times in the past five years.

TankerTrackers.com, which follows global illicit oil trades, has kept a close eye on the ship during its numerous trips to carry sanctioned Venezuelan oil in recent years.