Sri Lanka, April 7 -- International and local maritime trade unions this week expressed serious concern on the well-being of the 21 seafarers on board the Singaporean-flagged Dali that crashed on to the Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River in Baltimore-USA on March 26 and called on the authorities to closely monitor the developments both at home and overseas.

International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) Colombo Office representative Ranjan Perera told the Sunday Observer that the current focus by the authorities is on the devastation of the crash and the sequence of repercussions such as the loss of jobs and the crippling of the shipping infrastructure in that region.

"But at the same time, we urge the authorities to be...