Migrants hijack Thames Estuary ship
FOUR migrants armed with metal bars took over a cargo ship in the Thames Estuary in a bid to get into the UK last night.
The crew locked themselves on the bridge as the migrants demanded the ship was brought closer to the shore so they could swim to Britain.
The stowaways were found on the 70,000-tonne Grande Tema as it headed towards Tilbury Docks in Essex from Nigeria in west Africa. The migrants had been locked in a cabin but as the ship rounded the Isle of Thanet in Kent they escaped and grabbed “iron tubing” with which they threatened the crew.
The master and crew locked themselves in the bridge of the huge container ship, loaded with trucks and earth-moving equipment bound for the UK.
Paul Kyprianou, a spokesman for the vessel’s operator Grimaldi Lines, based in the Italian city of Naples said: “We found four stowaways. They were in the cabin, and today they managed to escape from the cabin and they started threatening the crew, requesting the master of the vessel navigating very close to the coast.
“That request was probably because they wanted to jump and reach the British coast.
“The crew reacted and locked themselves in the bridge of the vessel and they are safe. We haven’t had any injuries, so no clashes between stowaways and crew members.
“The master is in continuous contact with the UK authorities, particularly with the Essex police and the coastguard.
“We are waiting to see what is going to happen.”
Essex Police said: “We are working closely with our partners to resolve this incident as quick as possible.”