Greek Officer Killed, Three Others Kidnapped from VLCC Off Nigeria

One officer is lifeless and three others have been kidnapped following an assault on a Greek-owned VLCC anchored off the coast of Nigeria.

In an emailed assertion, Aeolos Management, managers of the Kalamos Shipping Corporation-owned MT KALAMOS, has confirmed that the vessel was attacked by a legal gang at 2200 hrs on February 3 whereas ready to finish loading at a delegated anchorage at Qua Iboe, Nigeria, inside territorial waters. During the assault, one officer sustained gunshot wounds and later handed away whereas being transferred to a close-by a hospital, the assertion mentioned. Two different officers and an AB have been taken by the gang and stay unaccounted for, in line with the corporate.

Aeolos added that it’s working with the authorities in Nigeria to determine the whereabouts of the lacking seafarers and to safe their launch.

The assertion didn’t elaborate on what number of crewmembers have been onboard the tanker when it was attacked, or their nationalities.

An replace from the Hellenic Coast Guard mentioned that 23 individuals have been aboard the tanker when it was attacked, together with 10 Greek nationals. The officer who was killed was additionally from Greece, in addition to two of these kidnapped, the replace mentioned.

According to data from Dryad Maritime, a UK-based maritime intelligence agency, the MT Kalamos arrived in Nigeria from Singapore on January 31 and has been anchored roughly 2 nautical miles off the Qua Iboe Terminal, situated within the Qua Iboe river estuary in southeastern Nigeria.

“The worrying thing is the fact that it didn’t take long for maritime criminals to recognise the vulnerability of this vessel and to mount an attack within days of the tanker’s arrival with possible tragic consequences and the, hopefully temporary, loss of three of the ship’s crew. All of this just serves to illustrate the dangers of operating off the Niger Delta and the inability of regional security forces to provide a safe operating environment,” mentioned Ian Millen, Chief Operating Officer of Dryad Maritime.

The 281,000 DWT MT Kalamos is flagged in Malta and was inbuilt 2000.