SOME 36 crew members of the cattle transport ship Yangtze Fortune have been stuck, abandoned and unpaid by their employer, at anchor in Portland for nearly three months.

The vessel has been in Portland waters since arriving with a cracked hull in need of repairs around September 28 this year - sitting at anchor -  aside from a brief trip to King Island to avoid bad weather, and has now been ordered by the Federal Court to be auctioned to recover the cost of debts.