Malaviya Twenty: Stranded ship leaves Great Yarmouth

The Malaviya Twenty has been renamed Typhoon by her new Greek owners

A ship which spent two years stranded in an English port because of legal problems has finally set sail.

The Malaviya Twenty was impounded in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, in June 2016 over unpaid port fees and crew wages.

At one point the crew were fed by local people and grew vegetables in boxes on the deck.

The ship was bought by a Greek firm last month, and the crew were released to return home.

The ship was originally impounded by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, and a prohibition notice on the ship issued after defects were found, leaving it unable to be moved.

It was bought for an undisclosed sum in September by Laskaradis Shipping at an auction of sealed bids held by the British Admiralty Marshal, and all legal requirements were settled.

Repairs have been carried out, and the ship has now set sail under her new name Typhoon.

Twelve seamen were originally stranded on the ship, and were fed and given internet access by the local community to help them stay in contact with their families.

At the time Great Yarmouth's port chaplain, Reverend Peter Paine paid tribute to local efforts to provide food and help to the crew, describing the response to an appeal as "absolutely fantastic".

Captain Nikesh Rastogi and his crew were able to leave the ship after it was bought by new owners

The sailors were replaced in February 2017 by a new crew led by Capt Rastogi, 43, from Mumbai.

"You learn to adapt, as in you read a lot more... you try to keep up with the news worldwide. Basically you do that or you slide into depression," said Capt Rastogi last month.

He and his remaining three sailors have now flown home to India.