West Africa Piracy Report

Hijacks

• 12 August 2013 – About 11 pirates armed with guns boarded and hijacked a Marshall Islands-flagged chemical tanker, the SP Atlanta, at anchor at 0330 LT in Lagos Anchorage, Nigeria.  They stole the crew members personal belongings and caused minor injuries to those on board the tanker.  Update (13 August 2013) – The vessel was released and safely arrived at Lagos anchorage.  No further details have been released.

Unsuccessful Attacks/Robberies

• 15 August 2013 – About 8 – 10 robbers in a speed boat tried to place a hook to the railings of a chemical tanker at 0240 UTC at Lagos anchorage, Nigeria.  Robbers were spotted by the crew and the alarm was raised.  Other ships were informed on the VHF Radio.  Local authorities were informed and a naval patrol arrived at the location and conducted a search, resulting in the boat moving away from the vessel.  The vessel has been reported safe.
• 12 August 2013 – Nigeria-flagged OSV came under attack at 2140 UTC, about 35 nautical miles off the Nigerian Coast.  Two gunboats with approximately 7 – 8 pirates on board fired upon the OSV.  A patrol boat was in the location and responded to the emergency calls.  Patrol boat exchanged fire with the pirates.  Pirate boats then headed north at a high speed.
• 11 August 2013 – Robbers in a small skiff approached an anchored Liberia-flagged product tanker, FPMC 25, at 0005 LT, Lagos anchorage, Nigeria.  Master raised the alarm and all crew members were mustered into the citadel.  The armed security team on board the vessel fired warning shots, resulting in the skiff moving away.
• 31 July 2013 (Late Report) – Robbers boarded an anchored Cayman Islands UK-flagged bulk carrier, the Athos, at 2300 LT while in Abidjan anchorage, Cote d’Ivoire.  The robbers used a long pole with a hook in order to board the vessel.  The crew members on board the bulk carrier spotted the robbers and raised the alarm.  Upon hearing this, the robbers escaped on a wooden boat.  All crew has been reported safe and nothing was stolen.
• 30 July 2013 (Late Report) – A gunboat claiming to be a Nigerian boat called a Hong-Kong-flagged chemical tanker, the High Jupiter, on VHF, requesting details of the tanker, cargo, last and next ports.  The call was made at 1345 LT while the tanker was about 45 nautical miles south of Brass, Nigeria.  This information was passed to the gun boat.  Around fifteen minutes later, the gun boat approached the tanker at a high speed, demanding that the tanker stop and permit boarding.  The Master informed that he would not be stopping as the area was a high risk for piracy attacks.  The gunboat threatened and followed the tanker for 20 minutes during which two shots were fired in the air.  The Master of the chemical tanker raised the alarm over VHF and requested ships in the vicinity to relay its message to port control which was not responding to its calls.  Upon hearing the VHF alarm, the gunboat moved away from the chemical tanker.  The tanker and its crew members has been reported safe.

 Weather Analysis

• Gulf of Guinea – South-southwest winds of 10 – 15 knots and seas of 4 – 6 feet.

• Extended Forecast – South-southwest winds of 10 – 15 knots and seas of 4 – 6 feet.

• Synoptic Discussion – The Gulf of Guinea is under the influence of high and low pressure systems, bringing strong southerly winds and moisture into the area.  Expect mostly cloudy conditions with rain showers and possible thunderstorms.