6 crew members kidnapped off vessel in Gulf of Guinea
Suspected pirates on Monday attacked a 5,551 TEU containership in the Gulf of Guinea, and kidnapped six crew members of the vessel.
The 20-year old Liberia-flagged ship named TONSBERG, was attacked 38 nautical miles SW of Bioko Island off Equatorial Guinea at 1430 hours on Monday December 13, 2021.
Esbern Snare, a Danish frigate in the area, provided medical assistance to the remaining crew members on board, none of whom sustained life-threatening injury.
As of the time of filing this report, the ship is en route from Cameroon to the port of Cotonou, Benin, according to data obtained from Marine Traffic.
The Gulf of Guinea has remained a dangerous shipping route for merchants’ ships and seafarers with 32% of all reported PIRACY incidents taking place in the region.
The region also accounted for all 50 kidnapped crew and the single crew fatality recorded by IMB during the first half of 2021.
