Luca Tommasi, our Grants Manager, has been visiting Duckdalben in Hamburg today. Over the last few years, the seafarers’ centre has increased it’s focus on ship-visiting, in response to decreased access to shore-leave. The Trust has been happy to support their efforts with grants developing these services.
The Kubus, the ship visitors’ office space (shown in the photo above), was completed in 2019 with a grant from the Trust and provides a central base for Duckdalben’s ship visiting work. Duckdalben’s team of 40 volunteers visited 2800 ships in 2023, building strongly back up towards the over 5000 ships per year visited before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Duckdalben have a fleet of 8 vehicles dedicated to ship visiting and transporting seafarers, funded by the Trust and other grantmaking organisations keen to support seafarer welfare. With their longstanding commitment to positive environmental action, 4 of Duckdalben’s vehicles are fueled by LNG rather than petrol, and the 4 newer vehicles fully electric.
For seafarers visiting Hamburg, Duckdalben is always ready to provide a supportive welcome. Find out more about Duckdalben at their website: https://duckdalben.de/