Tanker attacked

A crewman onboard a Transpetrol-owned LPG carrier in the South China Sea was beaten by pirates who forced the master to hand over cash at the weekend.

The attack on the 82,000-cbm Prospect (built 2009) came as a piracy-prevention body warned that attacks on ships in the region have hit a new record.

Six pirates armed with knives and machetes boarded the Singapore-flagged tanker as it was underway off Anambas Island just after midnight on Friday, a report from the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery Against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) read.

“They hit the duty officer on his head and forced him to bring them to the cabins of the captain and chief officer who handed over cash and their personal effects to the pirates,” the report read.

“Subsequently the pirates left the tanker and the crew activated the ship security alert.

“Apart from the duty officer who suffered some bruises the other crew was not injured.” There were 21 crew onboard the tanker comprising 11 Indians, nine Filipinos and a Sri Lankan.

The Prospect is owned by Transpetrol and operated by Transpetrol Maritime Services of Belgium.

The latest attack came as a spokesperson for ReCAAP, a government-to-government organisation, told newswire AFP that attacks on ships in the region have already topped 2005’s record this year.

The Prospect attack was one of 10 recorded so far in 2009 with the previous record being nine four years ago.

Tankers and large containerships are increasingly being targeted as they are more vulnerable and slow-moving.
By Eoin O’Cinneide in London
Published: 08:20 GMT, 21 Sep 2009
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