As dockworkers in Piraeus entered the third week of their strike yesterday, the union representing the country’s medical suppliers warned that the action risked leaving hospitals dangerously understocked.

According to a statement issued yesterday by the union, dozens of container ships carrying basic medical supplies remain stranded at various ports around the Mediterranean as commercial vessels are unable to continue their scheduled routes to the country’s main port of Piraeus. Meanwhile dozens more containers are stuck at Piraeus as the protesting workers will not allow them to get customs clearance. “If this strike continues for another week, there will be a serious problem and we will not be able to provide hospitals with the supplies required for their smooth operation,” a spokesman for the union said.