Dramatic video footage has shown the reality of negotiating the pirate-infested waters of the Gulf of Guinea as attacks surge.
The three and a half minute clip, shot on a seafarer's mobile phone, records a firefight between armed guards and a pirate skiff off Nigeria.
The footage was sent to Maritime Bulletin by the master of the unnamed vessel that had been en route from Norway to Lagos.
The date of the attack is not clear, but the incident is not believed to have been one of two involving firefights reported in recent days by security consultancies.
Two African guards are filmed from the deck outside the bridge, looking through binoculars and then firing machine guns, before being joined by a third.
Two more guards are seen on a lower deck.
The master is filmed warning his crew to stay away from the starboard side of the ship. The attackers fired back and the Russian-speaking crew later found their bullets on deck.
The seafarers on the bridge reported seeing a pirate being hit, before the lone skiff retreated.
The film also shows razor wire around railings to deter boardings.
Attacks on the rise
Attacks in the region deep offshore have been ramped up since the monsoon season ended in October.
Last week, a speedboat approached the 159,000-dwt Minerva Marine suezmax Minerva Evropi (built 2018) 205 nautical miles (380 km) off Bayelsa in Nigeria.
They fired shots but the ship performed evasive manoeuvres to deter the attack, and the pirates gave up and left the area.
That was the third attack in three days off Nigeria and followed another failed attempt to board the 463,652-cbf Laskaridis-owned reefer Cool Girl (built 1999) 95 nautical miles off Bayelsa on Thursday.
Gunmen again fired on this vessel, but armed guards returned fire and thwarted the attack.
Since then, a Greek product tanker, the 12,950-dwt New Ranger (built 2007), was boarded twice by pirate groups over the weekend while it was 376 km south of Lagos. The vessel and crew were reported to be safe.
The risk to ships in the region is regarded as critical. Attacks are highly likely to be carried out daily.
A total of 118 seafarers have been kidnapped in 24 incidents in the region this year.
