A second seafarer has been threatened by a robber wielding a gun at an anchorage off Manila in the Philippines.
The latest incident took place aboard the 4,250-teu containership CMA CGM Caimep (built 2010) in the early hours of 13 August 2021 near the South Harbour Anchorage Area.
The ship’s duty watchkeeper was proceeding to the forecastle deck to check the accommodation doors of the ship when a perpetrator appeared and aimed a gun at him.
News of this latest incident comes from the Singapore-based Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP).
The perpetrator, along with four others who served as lookouts, were said to have asked the watchkeeper about the location of the storage room.
The perpetrators took the watchkeeper to the storage room and ordered him to open it. They then tied his hands to the forward centre bollard and stole 20 buckets of paint from the storage room.
As the master and second officer of the ship could not contact the watchkeeper, a deck cadet went to check. But he was confronted by a perpetrator with a knife who shouted at him not to move.
However, the deck cadet managed to escape and reported the incident to the bridge using a two-way radio.
Robbery attempt
In early July, a seafarer aboard Maersk’s 2,086-teu containership Maersk Nussfjord (built 2021) had an improvised gun held against his head during a robbery attempt at Manila's South Harbour Anchorage area.
In another incident in early August aboard the 4,253-teu containership Seaspan New York (built 2005), a robber armed with a knife tried to stab the ship’s duty watchkeeper.
The watchkeeper managed to avoid being stabbed, but two other perpetrators tied him up with a rope on the forecastle deck.
The robbers then broke the padlock of the forecastle and stole two portable welding machines, and other fittings.
Since the start of 2021, there have been eight armed robberies against vessels off Manila, with most of the ships involved being containerships.
ReCAAP said it is concerned with the continued occurrence of incidents and the increased level of violence at South Harbour Anchorage Area of Manila.
“Ship masters and crew are strongly advised to exercise vigilance, maintain constant look-out for suspicious boats and report all incidents immediately to the local authorities,” the piracy watchdog said.
ReCAAP also warned crews that it was also very important for them “not to engage in a confrontation with the perpetrators”.
