Crewing agency Danica is arguing that crew changes should not now be attempted during the coronavirus outbreak.
As the western world shuts down and travel bans bite, managing director Henrik Jensen said seafarers are safer on board.
He added that changeovers are becoming almost impossible in most cases anyway.
“I think at the moment it may be safer for crew changes not to take place,” Jensen said.
“As long as no-one on board has the virus, they are effectively in a safe space where they are.”
Medical facilities limited
He added that experts believe that people are at a high risk of infection when they travel closely together in confined spaces, like planes and airports.
"That is why authorities are banning all but essential travel – to limit the spread of the virus. Our crew are therefore at much greater risk during their travel to the vessel, or home from it, than they are while serving on board," he said.
He also suggested that visitors should not be allowed on to ships to protect crew.
But Danica believes very sick seafarers are at greater risk on commercial vessels due to the lack of medical facilities, particularly since cruiseships are being denied port access or disembarkation.
“At present the virus is not significantly spreading among the merchant vessel fleet,” he said.
But he said he was "really worried" by the possibility of a crew member becoming seriously ill on board.
“It is evident from the incident in Japan that it is a bad idea to keep ill people confined together on a vessel as the virus can spread rapidly between persons on board," Jensen added.
"Medical facilities on most commercial vessels are not sufficiently well equipped to treat such a patient, especially on a long voyage."
He added that resources must be in place to support seafarers who may suffer mental health issues, or have an ill relative back home.
Relief on compassionate grounds may not be possible, however, he warned.
Crisis shifts continents
When the Asian Covid-19 crisis was at its peak, TradeWinds reported that shipmanagers were scrambling to hire non-Chinese seafarers and secure approvals from flag states to extend the time period crews could stay on vessels.
China's transport ministry asked shipping companies to bar seafarers from going ashore when their vessels call in the country as a containment measure.
Singapore, Russia, Italy, South Korea and the US then either banned or restricted the entry of Chinese nationals in attempts to contain the spread of the virus.
“As a general rule, we only change Chinese crew in China,” Wallem chief executive Frank Coles told TradWinds last month.
He added that crews of other nationalities either disembark in non-Chinese ports at least 14 days after their ships depart from China, or are changed before arriving in China.
Danica had said last month that more crew were being brought in from eastern Europe as the coronavirus gripped Asia.
