Vessel set on Fire by ……Pirates!

The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) have just reported that pirates have set the Estelle Shipping-owned cargo ship, M/V Pacific Express, ablaze after they were unable to take control of the vessel.

The IMB report indicates that the armed pirates were aboard two skiffs about 300 nautical miles east of Mombasa, Kenya, when they attempted to seize the vessel. The Cyprus Maritime-managed Pacific Express crewmembers were all able to retreat to the on-board citadel and dispatched for assistance.

In response to the crew locking themselves away, the pirates then set fire to the ship in hopes it would thwart the crew from the citadel. The piracy flagship of NATO, Andrea Doria, was sent to answer the request. According to the Italian Navy, the pirates fled the scene when they noticed the Andrea Doria approaching.

NATO security teams then evacuated the 26 crew members who were in the citadel, including a Ukrainian ship master, and 25 Filipinos. The crew from the Pacific Express have boarded the Andrea Doria and will be transported to Mombasa. The M/V Pacific Express had been en route to Mombasa to drop off shipments of steel bars and coils before the attack. There updated reports as of yet.

New Guidelines for Armed protection at Sea

Further interim guidance on the use of privately contracted armed security personnel (PCASP) on board ships to counter Somali-based piracy has been approved by an IMO intercessional working group.

The Intercessional Maritime Security and Piracy Working Group of the Maritime Safety Committee, which met at IMO Headquarters in London from 13 to 15 September 2011, approved the following Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) circulars for dissemination:

MSC.1/Circ.1408 on Interim Recommendations for port and coastal States regarding the use of privately contracted armed security personnel on board ships in the High Risk Area;

MSC.1/Circ.1406/Rev.1 on Revised Interim Recommendations for flag States regarding the use of privately contracted armed security personnel on board ships in the High Risk Area;

MSC.1/Circ.1405/Rev.1 on Revised Interim Guidance to ship-owners, ship operators and shipmasters on the use of privately contracted armed security personnel on board ships in the High Risk Area; and

a joint MSC and Facilitation Committee (FAL) circular on Questionnaire on information on port and coastal State requirements related to privately contracted armed security personnel on board ships, which is aimed at gathering information on current requirements.

The circulars provide interim guidance and recommendations to be taken into account when considering the use of PCASP if and when a flag State determines that such a measure would be lawful and, following a full risk assessment, appropriate.

As stated in the circulars, the interim guidance and recommendations “are not intended to endorse or institutionalize” the use of armed guards. Therefore, they do not represent any fundamental change of policy by the Organization in this regard. It is for each flag State, individually, to decide whether or not PCASP should be authorized for use on board ships flying their flag. If a flag State decides to permit this practice, it is up to that State to determine the conditions under which authorization will be granted.

The use of PCASP should not be considered as an alternative to Best Management Practices (BMP) and other protective measures. BMP4 has recently been issued by the shipping industry and will shortly be disseminated by IMO (as MSC.1/Circ.1339).

BOURBON Confirms Kidnapping of Crew

BOURBON confirms the kidnapping of 3 French crewmembers from the Addax offshore oil field off the Nigerian coast. In the night of the Tuesday 21st to Wednesday 22nd September 2010, the BOURBON ALEXANDRE and its 16 crewmembers, were subject to a joint assault from several speedboats. Three crewmembers, of French nationality, have been kidnapped; the 13 other crewmembers remain on board and no injuries have been reported.

Bourbon Alexandre, carrying a French flag, is an AHTS Vessel (Anchor Handling Tug Supply).

 
BOURBON has contacted all families and will keep them informed. The Crisis Unit of BOURBON in Marseilles, in coordination with the Emergency Unit of BOURBON in Nigeria, is evaluating the situation and working to obtain a rapid liberation in the safest security conditions. BOURBON is working in close collaboration with the French and Nigerian authorities.

BOURBON will continue to disclose any new information when available and verified and will not make any comment, which could adversely affect the liberation of the crewmembers.

Passenger Jumps to Death After Gambling Away $650k

Tuesday, September 21st, 2010

A 51-year-old man leapt to his death from the 13th deck of a Star Cruises gambling ship, Sunday, after losing 5 million HKD ($650,000 USD) playing baccarat.

 
The Chinese man known as Xu, began playing baccarat on Saturday after dinner and played until the table closed at 8 a.m. Sunday morning. After accumulating huge loses during his all night gambling binge, Xu was seen climbing to the top deck of the ship. Witnesses report seeing him wander around the top deck for more than an hour. Around 9:50 a.m., when the ship was south of the Kwo Chau islands, Xu was seen jumping off the 13th deck.

Marine police and the Fire Services Department dispatched rescuers to the area and the Government Flying Services sent a helicopter. After an hour of searching, the man’s body was found. The ship returned to port in Hong Kong, arriving at 12:30 p.m. with the body.

 
Star Cruises gambling vessel carries passengers out of Hong Kong to international waters, not subject to the gambling restrictions of China.

New Royal Navy Warship Damaged in Collision

Thursday, September 16th, 2010

The HMS DARING collided with a tug Tuesday the 14/09/10 in Hampshire, resulting in damage to the warship. 
The 7,500 ton Portsmouth based warship is thought to be the most advanced warship in the world, and was only recently declared ready for action earlier this month. The Type 45 destroyer was returning from routine operations and was being towed into Marchwood by the tug, SWITZER SUSSEX. Officials believe the tug lost power just as it was about to start towing the HMS Daring and was unable to move out of the way.
The Royal Navy has launched an investigation into the exact cause of the collision and will be assessing the extent of the damage to their new warship.

Cost of Piracy Escalating Despite Navy Surveillance Efforts

Contributor: IDGA Editorial Staff

A group of eight suspected pirates were apprehended after the US Navy foiled an attack on a vessel in the Gulf of Aden this month. The suspects were taken aboard a destroyer, the USS Farragut, following the successful navy surveillance operation undertaken by a counter-piracy taskforce, which was set up in January 2009.

USS Farragut sent out a helicopter to the aid of the MV Barakaale 1 after the Tanzanian-flagged vessel came under attack in the gulf and alerted others in the region by radio. The taskforce operates in the Gulf of Aden and nearby waters off the eastern coast of Somalia, where piracy has been particularly rife in recent years. Another navy surveillance and counter-piracy operation saw the cargo ship MV Ariella rescued by Danish Warship HDMS Absalon after pirates attacked the vessel on February 5th. HDMS Absalon was working as part of NATO's counter-piracy mission codenamed Operation Ocean Shield. Since the navy surveillance operations began in the area, there has been a 50 percent drop in piracy attacks.

While these navy surveillance operations were a success, there have been many more incidents in recent months where the victims of pirate attacks have not been so lucky. Paul and Rachel Chandler have been held captive by Somali pirates over 120 days after being kidnapped by pirates from their sailboat when heading towards Tanzania on October 23rd. Their captors have demanded a $7 million ransom and threatened to kill the couple if they do not receive the money.

Rise in Piracy Attacks
The number of piracy attacks worldwide rose by nearly 40 percent last year, with a total of 406 incidents reported according to International Maritime Bureau figures. It is the third successive year that the number of reported incidents has increased and the last time figures exceeded 400 was in 2003. Navy surveillance is increasingly important for combating the problem, which is in turn leading to escalating costs for those in the industry.

At a recent meeting of the East African Community Sectoral Council on Transport, Communications and Meteorology in Arusha, Tanzania, ministers noted that piracy off the Somali coast is having a serious impact on the local economy and transportation. They urged partner states to support efforts of the International Maritime Organization, African Union, Intergovernmental Authority on Development and other international initiatives geared towards fighting piracy in the Indian Ocean.

Insurance is also being affected by the issue. Lloyds insurers recently reported that ransoms can be as high as $3 million, with the cost to insurers often doubling that once legal expenses and delivery have been accounted for. On average, ransoms stand at between $2 million and $3 million, and the money earned through piracy has injected an estimated $90 million into the Somali economy up to November last year, when the report was published. The typical cost of a hijack is $1 million per ship, according to the report, with these expenses currently being incurred by the shipping and energy sectors. But if the problem persists then ship owners will eventually pass on these costs, according to the report.

Navy Surveillance Operations
Thomas Countryman, principal deputy assistant secretary of political-military affairs, this month spoke about the anti-piracy efforts being made by the United States in terms of navy surveillance and military operations. He said that both the military and the industry had worked hard over the past year to combat the problem. The number of nations contributing to the maintenance of an international navy surveillance force in the Gulf of Aden has risen to about 20 in the last 12 months.

Countryman added, On any given day there are, on average, 17 ships patrolling in the gulf and conducting navy surveillance operations to provide security to the 30,000 cargo ships passing through the area every year. Countryman also highlighted the escalating cost of battling pirates off the coast of Somalia during his speech in Washington. "The locus of pirate activity has shifted and we are trying to deal with it. It's expensive, and that's why we feel strongly the need to pursue the lowest-cost options to deter piracy," he explained. Defensive measures taken by ship owners and crews are "the lowest-cost and most-effective way to deter pirate attacks."

Grounded Arctic Tanker Tries to Lighten Load

 

Tuesday, September 14th, 2010

An attempt was underway Monday in the Northwest Passage to re-float a fuel tanker that has been stuck in a sandbar for nearly two weeks. The merchant vessel MV NANNY ran aground Sept. 1 in Simpson Strait, about 50 kilometres southwest of Gjoa Haven, Nunavut.

 
The tanker was carrying 9.5 million litres of diesel bound for Nunavut’s remote communities. The double-hulled tanker was not damaged when it ran aground, and no diesel has leaked from it to date.

A second Woodward’s fuel tanker MV Tuvaq arrived in the Gjoa Haven area on Sunday and began pumping fuel out of the MV Nanny on Monday. Government officials estimate that removing at least 2.5 million litres of diesel will float the tanker. The Canadian Coast Guard and Transport Canada are continue to monitor the operation.

Pirate Shot Dead

A suspected pirate has been shot dead as private guards repelled an attack on a cargo ship off Somalia.

The EU naval force (Navfor) says the suspect was found dead by a team from an EU warship which was responding to a distress call from the cargo ship.

Guards aboard the Panamanian-flagged MV Almezaan had returned fire after the ship was attacked, it added. Six other suspected pirates were detained by a Spanish Naval vessel. 

A Navfor spokesman stated  “All the evidence suggests that there was a fire-fight ” 

The ESPS Navarra found one pirate mother ship and two skiffs. The mother ship was destroyed after the suspects were taken into custody.

Navfor spokesman Cmdr John Harbour has stated, that he believed there was strong evidence to prosecute the six suspects detained.

"All the evidence suggests that there was a fire-fight," bullet-holes were found in the skiffs in which they were found, he added.

The owners of the cargo ship, which was en route to Mogadishu, were contacted and asked to comply with any subsequent prosecution.

The waters off Somalia are among the most dangerous in the world for shipping, despite patrols from Navfor and other foreign naval forces.

The Navarra received a distress signal early on Tuesday from a merchant ship off the Somali coast and sped to the area.

Pirates had launched an attack on the MV Almezaan. This was successfully repelled by members of an "vessel protection unit" on board the ship, who returned fire. A second attack was also repelled and the pirates fled the area.

A helicopter from the Navarra sighted the suspected pirates' boats and ordered them to stop, firing warning shots when they refused to do so.

When a team from the Navarra boarded the vessels, they found three suspected pirates in one skiff and three in the second, along with the body of a fourth man. The body was transferred to the Navarra and an investigation indicated that the individual had died from small-calibre gunshot wounds.

A number of suspected Somali pirates have been killed by international forces during rescue operations but this is thought to be the first time private security guards have killed a pirate in defence of a ship.

It should be remembered that merchant vessels do have a right to protect themselves if attacked on the high seas.