The Republic of the Marshall Islands issues Marine Safety Advisory
The Republic of the Marshall Islands issues Marine Safety Advisory regarding Suspicious activity in Northern Arabian Sea as follows:
Please be advised that the Administrator has been informed that on September 12 at 1205 UTC at position 25.07.3N latitude and 06024.0E longitude a vessel was approached suddenly by a very fast small boat (color white and orange) off the starboard bow. The Master ordered the crew to the citadel while massive maneuvers to hard starboard and port were carried out. The small boat followed behind and one (1) man waved a bottle as if he wanted to ask for water, but then suddenly three (3) more men stood up. The small boat veered away once they realized they wouldn’t be able to board the vessel.
The Maritime Administrator would take this opportunity to again urge all vessels operating in the High Risk Area to actively implement recommended Best Management Practices for anti-piracy measures as follows:
- Prepare the crew (refer to Marshall Islands MG-2-11-12);
- Harden the ship before the ship enters the High Risk Area (HRA);
- When entering the HRA from the direction of either the Suez Canal, the Arabian Gulf at 26N, the south at 15S or from the east at 78E: o Register the ship with the MSCHOA (http://www.mschoa.org /+44 (0) 1923 958545); o Report to the UKMTO ([email protected] / +971 505 523 215); and
- Continue to provide daily reports of ship’s position, course, speed and estimated and actual arrival times to UKMTO while in the HRA.
- Remember, the ship must be registered with the MSCHOA and report to the UKMTO with every intended transit of the HRA;
- Consider participating in the SSRS service (http://ssrs.org);
- Utilize the IRTC in the GoA;
- For low and slow ships, join pre-scheduled military escorted convoys through the GoA;
- Avoid navigating through the Mozambique Channel whenever possible;
- Continue to maintain a heightened state of awareness;
- Maintain strict 24 hour anti-piracy visual and radar watches at sea and in port anchorages; and
- MSD 001 (11/01) 2 of 2 MSA No. 114-11
- Report all attacks and suspicious sightings to the UKMTO, MARLO (+973-3940-1395), COMUSNAVCENT (+973-1785-3879) or IMB Piracy Reporting Centre ([email protected], +603-2031-0014).
The Maritime Administrator advises that the RMI flag State does not object to vessel owners, operators, and/or Masters taking appropriate measures in regard to the safety and security of their vessels, crew and cargo. Whether to use an armed or unarmed security detail and how to facilitate that detail is a decision for the vessel operator to make after assessing the piracy related risks in the area where the vessel will be operating, the potential risks and benefits of available anti-piracy related countermeasures, and the logistics of implementing those measures.
This assessment could include discussions with labour representatives, port officials, charterers, counsel, and underwriters. Reference should be made to IMO MSC.1/Circ.1405 and Circ.1406 before engaging any PCASP.
Source: The Republic of the Marshall Islands