One of the Emden, Germany built tugs that called at Malta was the single screw tugboat HELP, homeported at Nuku Alofa, Tonga flag (TON).
She was built by Werft Schulte & Bruns, at Emden, Germany as VOURI with yard number 193 and launched on 15th November 1956 for Union des Remorqueurs de Douala, Cameroon, homeported at Douala.
In 1975 she was sold to Rimorchiatori Calabresi Spa, Crotone, Italy and renamed her as GIAPPO. Year later she was renamed as PONENTE by the same owners.
During May 2000 she was still under the same name, but had no registered owner and it looked as though she had reached the end of the road. In 2001 she was sold for demolition as ADAMOS but had a last minute reprieve from the breakers torch and re-emerged as the HELP .
In fact on 22nd January, 2002 she was in the registered ownership of ‘Mediterranean Help’ with callsign ‘A3CC5’ with TON flag.
On Monday 11th March, 2002 at 1425 hrs she called Valletta Port Control based at Palace Tower Signal Station (PTSS), Valletta, Malta stating that she was being towed by the 107 metre long (loa) PAN flag, Spanish owned tanker FORMOL after she was in distress around 75 nautical miles off Malta with a crew of 4 and flooded engine room while she was on passage from Sfax, Tunisia to Greece.
Upon her arrival she was berthed at Lighters Wharf alongside the Maltese owned offshore supply boat SEA SERV III, the former SMIT LLOYD 1.
On Saturday 16th March, 2002 she was spotted leaving Grand Harbour, Malta bound to Greece.
On 19th June, 2006 she was sold and renamed HERO with Sierra Leone flag (SLE) homeported at Freetown . The registered owner and ship manager was Mallakos Sea Shipping of Piraeus, Greece.
On May 23rd, 2010, she arrived and beached at Aliaga , Turkey.
