Around fifty ships are stranded in Belgian ports and on the North Sea due to a strike affecting maritime services in Vlissingen, the Netherlands, according to the Flemish agency responsible for maritime and coastal services.
The strike has disrupted the transportation of pilots to larger vessels navigating the Scheldt River, a service conducted via small pilot boats. On Tuesday, only one pilot boat will be operational.
Since few pilots will be available, the number of waiting ships is expected to rise. The pilot station in Zeebrugge will not be operational from 7:30 p.m. on Monday to 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday due to the national strike.
