A combined team of the Nigerian Navy and Ocean Marine Solution Limited (OMSL) has rescued a Chinese cargo ship attacked in Gulf of Guinea, thus saving Nigeria from another dent on its maritime security outlook.
According to reports obtained from FleetMon Explorer, an international news agency, a general cargo ship ‘Huanghai Glory,’ which left the Lekki Port, east of Lagos, Nigeria, on Thursday March 5, 2020 was reported to have been attacked and boarded by pirates at 1820 UMT some 85 nautical miles (NM) south of Lagos.
According to the report, the ship and its 23 crew members (all Chinese) were said to have been under the siege of the Pirates for about 24 hours after the matter was reported to the Nigerian authorities.
Independent investigation by our reporters revealed that Nigeria’s maritime agencies could not render any rescue efforts until a patrol boat (NNS Sparrow) owned and operated by the joint team of Nigeria Navy and OMSL under the Safe Anchorage Area (SAA) of Lagos port rose to the occasion.
Narrating the incident, FleetMon Explorer stated: “General cargo ship, Huanghai Glory, reported by Dryad Global as attacked, boarded by pirates at 1820 UTC Mar 5, 2020, some 85nm south of Lagos Nigeria, Gulf of Guinea.
“The ship was drifting after attack, not responding to contact requests.”
Although FleetMon Explorer did not expatiate on the details of patrol boat NNS Sparrow which rescued the ship and its crew members our investigation confirmed that it belong to OMSL, as it is part of the vessels purchased by the firm and hitherto deployed to the Lagos water coast in assisting the Nigerian Navy to carry out patrol operations as part of the SAA agreement which has in recent times come under attack by the management of the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA.
A source at the firm who confirmed the incident said, “The vessel is not our client but the Navy beckoned on us to assist considering the amount of bureaucracy it would take for them to execute.”
Speaking on the development, Lagos based freight forwarder, Mr. Mark Okonkwo, who claimed to be aware of the incident told our reporter that if
not for the swift intervention of the OMSL rescue vessel Nigeria would have once again come under negative publicity.
He opined that the port regulators should allow for private sector participation in the security of the nation’s seaports.
He added that, OMSL should be encouraged to set up same security outfit with the Navy in the Warri and Bonny area which have now become a pirate zone.
