Good news from Hapag-Lloyd as infected boxship crew recover and test negative for COVID-19

All crew members on board Hapag-Lloyd’s chartered container ship M/V Montpellier have fully recovered and tested negative for the COVID-19 virus, the company said in an update.

To remind, the boxship, deployed by Hapag-Lloyd on its Middle East / India Africa Express (MIAX) Service, was ordered to remain anchored in Durban after two crew members tested positive to the virus in late May.

During the two-week quarantine, the ship was banned from offloading cargo.

A third crew member of the ship tested positive for coronavirus in South Africa, earlier this month, resulting in further extension of the ship’s quarantine.

“M/V Montpellier was allowed to enter the Durban port where the vessel was fully cleaned and disinfected,” the German liner company added.

As informed, cargo operations were scheduled to start on June 18th, and all containers that are intended for discharge in Durban and Cape Town are set to be offloaded.

“Cargo destined for Cape Town is planned to be loaded onto the next MIAX vessel MV NYK Paula Voyage 2022W. She is scheduled to arrive at Durban on June 29th and will sail from Durban on July 1st. Arrival in Cape Town is expected on July 3rd,” the update reads.

The 2006-built sub-Panamax, sailing under a Liberian flag, belongs to Germany’s shipowner Zeaborn GmbH, according to the data from VesselsValue.