Merchant ship with 22 Indians on board goes missing off West African coast
The merchant vessel “Marine Express’ is reported to be missing from the Gulf of Guinea off the Benin coast. Reports mention there is a ‘high possibility’ that the ship has been hijacked by pirates off West Africa. (Photo: Google Maps) The merchant vessel “Marine Express’ is reported to be missing from the Gulf of Guinea off the Benin coast. Reports mention there is a ‘high possibility’ that the ship has been hijacked by pirates off West Africa. (Photo: Google Maps)
An oil tanker with 22 Indians on board is presumed to be missing off Benin coast in the Gulf of Guinea near West Africa, the Ministry of External Affairs said. The missing merchant vessel is owned by Mumbai-based Anglo Eastern shipping company.
MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted that the Indian mission in the Nigerian capital Abuja is in contact with authorities in Nigeria and Benin. The two countries are coordinating efforts to locate the missing vessel and are monitoring the situation.
The Anglo Eastern shipping company has requested the Directorate General of Shipping in Mumbai to get in touch with the Nigerian and Beninese authorities to conduct search operations for the missing vessel which was carrying gas oil, reported news agency ANI. The agency, citing reports, said that there is a ‘high possibility’ that the ship might have been hijacked by pirates off west Africa.
A merchant vessel Marine Express (oil tanker), owned by Mumbai-based Anglo Eastern shipping company with 22 Indian nationals onboard, is presumably missing off the coast of Benin in the Gulf of Guinea. — Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) February 3, 2018
Meanwhile, Nigerian authorities have instructed all boats to report to the International Maritime Bureau’s (IMB) Anti-Piracy Reporting Centre in London if they catch sight of the Marine Express.
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