Travel Tips
Hijacked American Crew Defeats Pirates, Regains Control of Vessel
The American crew of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship regained control of the vessel after it was hijacked by pirates off the coast of eastern Somalia last night, but the fate of the ship’s captain is still unknown.
The Maersk Alabama, owned by Norfolk, Virginia-based Maersk Line Ltd., a subsidiary of Danish group A.P. Moller-Maersk, was transporting humanitarian food commodities to Africa early Wednesday morning when the 20-member crew was overtaken by at least four pirates.
Less than 12 hours later, the unarmed crew wrested control of the 17,000-ton ship from the bandits. Although reports are conflicting, officials have stated that crew members may still be holding one pirate on the ship, but other pirates may be holding the ship’s captain hostage.
Merchant vessels are generally not armed, but according to the Maersk CEO John Reinhart, crew members are trained to deal with piracy.
This incident marks the first time in more than 200 years that a U.S.-flagged vessel has been attacked by African pirates.
A recent surge in pirate attacks off the Somali coast has many concerned about naval security in the region. Last year, there was increased pirate activity—and therefore increased security—around the Gulf of Aden, which is located in the Arabian Sea between the north coast of Somalia and the south coast of Yemen.
But as of March and April the pirate activity has spread further out in the Indian Ocean, off the east coast of Somalia. Better weather conditions, richer targets and fewer security measures are thought to be primary reasons that pirates have moved away from the Gulf of Aden.
This was the sixth vessel seized within a week off the coast of Africa, and follows a hijacking spree over the weekend in which pirates captured three vessels, including a German-flagged boxship.
IMB Director Pottengal Mukundan has recommended that vessels avoid calling at East African ports and stay at least 600 nautical miles from the coastline.
By Sarika Chawla for PeterGreenberg.com.
Related links: Fox News, Voice of America, New York Times, Reuters, International Chamber of Commerce
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