Stowaways held as special forces gain control of oil tanker off Isle of Wight
Seven stowaways have been detained after the Special Boat Service stormed a Liberian registered tanker off the Isle of Wight which they are suspected of attempting to hiijack.
The special forces responded to a request for help from Hampshire police in the early evening on Sunday, gaining control of the Nave Andromeda vessel in nine minutes after it was feared that the crew was no longer fully in charge.
“Armed forces have gained control of the ship and seven individuals have been detained. Police investigations will now continue. Initial reports confirm the crew are safe and well,” the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in a statement.
The 228-metre tanker had been expected to dock in Southampton on Sunday to pick up a cargo of petrol, but its course in the Channel became erratic, prompting calls for an intervention as it passed the south-east edge of the Isle of Wight.
The SBS, based in nearby Poole, Dorset, used two Navy Merlin and two Navy Wildcat helicopters to take control of the tanker, which had sailed to the UK from Nigeria. Typically 16 people fast-roping down from the helicopters would be used to take control of a ship.
Hampshire police said all 22 crew members of the Nave Andromeda were safe and well and officers were now investigating the incident. The force said: “At 10.04am today concerns were raised to police for the welfare of crew on board the vessel, which was situated approximately six miles off the coast of Bembridge.
“The vessel had been travelling in the direction of Southampton, having sailed from Lagos in Nigeria. It was
reported that a number of stowaways were on board, and they had made threats towards the crew.
“Following a multi-agency response by police, with support from the military and other emergency service partners, seven people were detained by police.”
The vessel left Lagos on 6 October. Lloyd’s List, the shipping newspaper, said it believed seven stowaways had boarded in Nigeria. Their presence had been discovered, but they became violent when the crew attempted to lock them in a cabin.
Naval insiders were relieved to have concluded the incident relatively quickly once the police asked for help. “This was happening pretty much in the Royal Navy’s backyard. I think they were keen to show they could put a stop to it,” a naval source said.
The defence secretary, Ben Wallace, and the home secretary, Priti Patel, authorised armed forces personnel to board the ship in the Channel in response to a police request, the MoD said.
Wallace said: “I commend the hard work of the armed forces and police to protect lives and secure the ship. In dark skies, and worsening weather, we should all be grateful for our brave personnel. People are safe tonight thanks to their efforts.”
Tobias Ellwood, chairman of the Commons defence committee, said the boarding of the tanker by British armed forces was a “good outcome”. “Seven stowaways on board taking over a ship or causing the ship not to be in full command would have triggered a multi-agency alarm and then well-rehearsed classified protocols were put into action,” he told the BBC.
“Initially, it didn’t look like this was terrorist-related nor involving WMD, but the erratic behaviour [of the ship] was concerning. The safety of the crew was important, as is indeed any unauthorised movement towards the coast. I am pleased to see that swift action has been taken.”
The Nave Andromeda is understood to be managed by Inchcape and owned by Greek operator Navios Maritime Holdings. The vessel was reported to have made two stops on its voyage, anchoring off the Canary Islands and off the French coast just south of Saint-Nazaire in Brittany.
Police as well as Maritime and Coastguard Agency staff initially dealt with the incident. It comes after a summer in which the number of migrants crossing the Channel has rapidly increased. According to a PA Media analysis, 7,000 migrants had arrived in the UK in small boats this year by the end of September – more than three times the number of arrivals by the same route in the whole of 2019.