A GROUP of five stranded sailors remain hopeful they will soon be paid, now two of their crew have returned home.

The remaining crew of Westwind II also look set to go home after spending seven months on board the cargo ship at Portland Port while it has been under arrest by the Admiralty Marshall.

A court ruled the ship should be sold for £500,000 and the crew’s wages paid from the proceeds.

Around $80,000 in unpaid wages is owed to the five men, from Turkey and Georgia, after the ship was detained at the port due to a damages claim after it ran aground and caused disruption to a nearby mussels and oyster farm.

The men were told if they were to leave the ship they would not be paid.

Following the hearing at the Admiralty, Commercial and London Mercantile Court, crew members Asim Aktay and Calcan Erkan have returned home to their families.

The remaining crew members will hand over to a new crew and said they hoped to be gone in the next 10 days.

Some of the men have now been away from their families for a year and half.

Mustafa Sagtol, who remains on board and is the chief engineer, said: “We are very pleased to soon be going home. We have been told we will be here until the new crew arrive and we have to stay and familiarise them with the ship before we can leave.”

Fees for the port and the court are set to be paid first, with the crew being paid from the remainder of the revenue.

Charities the Apostleship of the Sea and the Sailors’ Society stepped in to help the men when the vessel was de-arrested and re-arrested again.

Both charities have provided support for the men, who have been given food, water and fuel by the Admiralty.

Mark Kemmis-Betty, of the Apostleship of the Sea charity, said: “There was a period of about three weeks when they were not under arrest and the Admiralty ceased to provide them with water and fuel.

“The International Transport Workers’ Federation appealed to the Admiralty Court for the ship to be re-arrested and it was re-arrested.”

Although damage claims were dropped by the mussels and oyster farm, Mr Kemmis-Betty added that this was no longer the case and a trial would take place at a later date.

He said: “This is the worry now to the five men because the fish farm is demanding that they get paid first.”

It is believed the ship has been sold to an Egyptian buyer and will remain under arrest until all safety repairs are complete.