The International Transport Federation has called for further answers from the Coast Guard following the emergency over a Polish-owned chemical tanker off Kerry last week.
The 95m West Sailorwas towed successfully into Cobh, Cork harbour, at the weekend, and the tug Breegebankwas escorted by the Naval Service patrol ship, LE Aoife.
Nine of the 15 crew were sent to Cork University Hospital for medical checks, with one crew member referred on for tests in relation to smoke and chemical inhalation.
A further four members who were not so critical are due to receive medical checks in hospital today.
International Transport Federation (ITF) inspector Ken Fleming, of Siptu, visited the ship and spoke to the owner's representative in Cobh on Saturday, and said that the company had agreed to fly five of the crew home.
Mr Fleming expressed satisfaction that the owners had been co-operative, but was critical of the delay in towing the vessel in last week.
The alert was raised after a fire broke out in the ship's engine room in the early hours of Wednesday morning, several miles off Brandon Head, Co Kerry.
Fortunately, the ship had already deposited a load of sulphuric acid at the Aughinish Alumina plant on the Shannon estuary and was on its way to the Belgian port of Antwerp, and weather conditions were good.
The 15-strong Polish and Filipino crew brought the fire under control but the main engine failed to restart.
The Irish Coast Guard offered to assist with evacuation but says that the master of the vessel did not believe this was necessary.
The ITF said that the crew were very traumatised and needed assistance.
Following direct contact between the federation and Minister of State for the Marine Pat the Cope Gallagher, the LE Aoifewas despatched and a tug was hired to bring the ship in to Cork, where it will undergo repairs.
However, under current salvage and pollution legislation, ministerial intervention is not required as the Coast Guard has delegated authority to order a master to accept assistance, if the ship's owners are not already arranging it.
This has been enforced in similar situations off the Irish coastline in past years where there was a risk to life and/or a pollution threat, such as the Princess Evaalert off the Donegal coast in January 2003.
The federation has called for emergency procedures at sea to be amended so that boarding a ship by the Naval Service in such a situation is mandatory. The union also wants a Government tug to be based on the west coast to respond to similar crises in future.
"If this vessel had not discharged its cargo of acid earlier, or the seas had been rough there could have been a far less happy ending to the story," Mr Fleming said.
"At present the decision to board is left to the discretion of the Naval Service, but events on the West Sailorshow this is not enough."
