ABUJA (Sundiata Post) – The Nigerian Navy ship, NNS CENTENARY, has carried out a successful operation leading to the rescue of a supply vessel, MV BOURBON about 55 nm off Brass, Rivers State.
This was disclosed on Wednesday in a statement signed by Captain Suleiman Dahun for the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS).
Dahun said that following an alert from the ship’s owners, the NN dispatched NNS CENTENARY to locate and rescue the ship which was accomplished at about 2.00 am on Wednesday.
He confirmed that “both vessels are currently heading towards the Federal Lighter Terminal, Onne, Port Harcourt where the naval authorities will conduct further investigation”. [pro_ad_display_adzone id=”70560″]
“One Russian and a Nigerian were abducted from MV BOURBON before NNS CENTENARY was able to contact and rescue the vessel from the hijackers,” he added.
Dahun also said that efforts are currently ongoing to ascertain the whereabouts of the abducted crew.
He recalled that another NNS OKPABANA recently rescued MT MAXIMUS, a foreign oil tanker, hijacked by gun men off the coast of Ivory Coast. He said the ship was laden with 4,700 metric tons of AGO.
In that operation, he noted, NN personnel killed one pirate and arrested six others. The ship, he revealed, had a crew of 18 from Pakistan, China, Sudan, South Korea and Ghana.