Thousands of sheep and cattle stranded on ship off Western Australia after being diverted from the Red Sea

() – More than 14,000 sheep and 2,000 cattle remain stranded aboard a ship off the coast of Western Australia after diverting from the Red Sea for safety reasons.

The vessel, MV Bahijah, set sail from the Western Australian port city of Fremantle on January 5 bound for the Middle East, according to statements from the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF). The ship was headed to Jordan, according to affiliate Nine News.

Fifteen days into the trip, the ship had to divert from the Red Sea due to the “worsening security situation,” according to the DAFF.

Due to the “exceptional circumstances and taking into account animal welfare considerations”, the decision was made on January 20 to return the ship with the livestock on board to Australia, according to a DAFF update published on January 29.

The ship, sailing under the flag of the Marshall Islands, returned to Australian shores and currently remains stranded near the coastal town of Hillarys, according to affiliate Nine News.

Amid a sweltering heat wave, with temperatures in Western Australia’s capital Perth reaching 39 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, authorities are racing to determine what to do with the ship.

DAFF said Wednesday that it is working closely with the exporter to determine next steps, adding that “all reports to date indicate that there are no signs of any significant health or welfare concerns with the livestock on board.”

A registered veterinarian and an accredited livestock farmer are on board the ship “to look after the health and well-being of the livestock,” the DAFF stated.

The value of the animals on board is believed to be more than two million Australian dollars ($1.3 million), according to Nine.

The ship is now facing biosecurity issues as the animals cannot be reintroduced into Australia without going through quarantine.

Western Australia Premier Roger Cook said authorities are working to organize quarantine for the expected arrival of the cattle in Fremantle, Nine News reported.

“We have facilities that we use in the normal course of events for these types of activities, but obviously it’s quite a large number in this case,” Cook said, according to Nine.

Western Australian Farmers’ Federation (WAFarmers) livestock section president Geoff Pearson has suggested authorities could also keep the animals on board the ship for re-export, taking a longer route around Africa instead. across the Red Sea, reported the public broadcaster ABC.

“The biosecurity risks of unloading these cattle leaving foreign waters is not an option when we have the option to re-export these cattle immediately,” Pearson said, according to the ABC.

In its statement on Wednesday, the DAFF said it is reviewing a request from the exporter “to unload some animals in Australia before re-exporting the rest of the animals on board the vessel”, without providing further details.