Marine Police News

Chinese coast guard authorities said it took "necessary control measures" and drove away a Japanese fishing vessel that had entered "territorial waters" around Senkaku Islands, state media reported."We urge the Japanese side to immediately cease all illegal activities in the waters and ensure that similar incidents do not recur," China Marine Police spokesperson Gan Yu said, according to the report late Thursday.China calls the islands Diaoyu while Japan calls them Senkaku.

The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has highlighted that, on average, crew have under 11 minutes to recover someone who has fallen overboard into cold water before they become unresponsive.An analysis of 20 accidents that occurred between 2017 and 2021 shows that the time decreases as the water becomes colder or the sea state rougher. In some cases, crew had just four or five minutes to coordinate a complex recovery.When examining the rate of successful recoveries…

China's coast guard entered the waters around disputed East China Sea islets on Wednesday to counter what it called the incursion of Japanese vessels into Chinese territorial waters.Disputed East China Sea islets claimed by China and Japan have long been a sticking point in bilateral ties.

Swedish builder Marell Boats informs it has been awarded a new contract to supply five fast patrolling and interceptor vessels to the Norwegian Police. The five new M12 RIBs will be delivered during from the third quarter this year through the first quarter 2023, to five different locations in south of Norway.The medium-sized patrol boats will be used by the Norwegian Police for patrolling and assignments such as surveillance, search and rescue, boarding and control of recreational boats. It will also be used as a training platform of police personnel in boat handling and navigation.

The Coast Guard’s 353-ton, 154-foot fast response cutter (WPC) is capable of deploying independently to conduct missions that include port, waterways and coastal security; fishery patrols; search and rescue; and national defense. The service plans to build 64 of them to replace the 110-foot Island class patrol boats. The FRC has a range of 2,500 miles, but the endurance of the 24 crewmembers is normally limited to about five days based on the quantity of provisions carried. Both the 110s and 154s have about the same speed and range…

Sweden-based Marell Boats and Scania Power Solutions are working to develop what they say is are next-generation sustainable and technologically advanced vessels as they prepare the launch of the M17 Patrol vessel with a hybrid driveline. The companies said they were collaborating to create "a sustainable and state-of-the-art vessel to meet the increased demand for hybrid solutions." According to the two firms, the M17 Patrol will become the most energy-efficient hybrid high-speed…

HM Coastguard in the UK was among the agencies joining an international search operation last night (Friday 22 November) after a superyacht sank off Indonesia.At 9.08pm Friday 22nd November, HM Coastguard in the UK received a call from the Australian maritime authority, (JRCC Australia), who had in turn received a HF DSC Distress from what initially appeared to be a UK registered vessel named Asia. Investigations started by searching all relevant databases for contact details for the vessel but the vessel was not found to be on the UK Register. Coastguard coordinators in the UK are able to monitor beacon alerts globally and had noticed that a US registered EPIRB…

Piracy increased on the world’s seas in 2018, with a marked rise in attacks against ships and crews around West Africa, the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau’s (IMB) latest annual piracy report reveals.Worldwide, the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre (PRC) recorded 201 incidents of maritime piracy and armed robbery in 2018, up from 180 in 2017.The Gulf of Guinea remains increasingly dangerous for seafarers. Reports of attacks in waters between the Ivory Coast and the Democratic Republic of Congo more than doubled in 2018, accounting for all six hijackings worldwide, 13 of the 18 ships fired upon, 130 of the 141 hostages taken globally, and 78 of 83 seafarers kidnapped for ransom.The region saw a significant new spike in violence in the last quarter of 2018.

International Maritime Organization (IMO)  is providing training to countries in the west Indian Ocean and Gulf of Aden on managing insecurity in the maritime domain in a regional workshop at the Djibouti Regional Training Centre (9-13 December).The countries are Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Jordan, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Tanzania, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, the Sudan and Yemen.It’s the latest in an ongoing series of capacity-building initiatives in the region, targeted at national focal points and key personnel in maritime security.Participants include officers from coast guards, marine police, navy and maritime administrations…

A $250 million superyacht, impounded as part of a hunt for assets linked to the multi-billion dollar investigation into 1Malaysia Development Bhd, arrived at a port in Malaysia on Tuesday about six months after it was seized.The Cayman Islands-flagged Equanimity was first seized in the Indonesian holiday venue of Bali in February at the request of U.S. authorities investigating 1MDB.The Malaysian state fund is at the center of money-laundering probes in at least six countries, including the United States, Switzerland and Singapore. A total of $4.5 billion was misappropriated from 1MDB by high-level officials of the fund and their associates, according to the U.S.

From the sinking of the Titanic to the current piracy phenomenon plaguing the world's oceans, Maritime challenges requires a conserted and collaborative global effort at maintaining safety of live and protection of property at sea.To this the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA) collaborated with its global partners from the European Uninon Gulf of Guinea Interregional Network (EU-GoGIN), and the Inter-Regional Coordination Centre (ICC) and organized a four-day crisis response training for security experts and players in the maritime sector.Participants were drawn from the Ghana Maritime Authority, Ghana Army, Ghana Navy, Airforce, National Security, National Disaster Management Organisation and Ghana Immigration Service.

Good Samaritans rescued four people from the water Saturday morning, after a collision between a recreational boat, with six people aboard, and an oyster barge being pushed by a tug which was headed for an oyster bed near the James River Bridge. The two people went missing after a collision took place between a recreational boat, with six people aboard. First responders from multiple agencies are working together by boat and air to search for the two other people that were aboard the 19-foot center console boat when the incident occurred. The waterway is closed between the James River Bridge and the Monitor Merrimac Memorial Bridge Tunnel for safety of life.

The National Maritime Law Enforcement Academy (NMLEA), and its subsidiary International Maritime Law Enforcement Academy (IMLEA), announced a teaming agreement with AMES Maritime Security (AMES) of Kingston, Georgetown (Guyana) to provide international level maritime safety and security services. The cadre of professionals from within both organizations are recognized for their military, maritime, and security skills and competence, and their ability to provide training, exercise, education, assessment, consultation, and other services.

At about 2.53am on 19 April 2018, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) received a report that five persons had gone overboard from a boat, about 0.7 nautical mile northeast of Pedra Branca, the coordinates being Latitude 01˚ 20.5’N and Longitude 104˚ 24.5’E, within Singapore territorial waters. Personnel and assets from the Singapore Police Coast Guard (PCG) and the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) were immediately deployed for search and rescue (SAR) operations. In addition, MPA has issued navigational broadcasts for ships to look for the missing person. Of the five, four were rescued by the PCG and the RSN. One person is still unaccounted for. The four who were rescued are Indonesians.

Maersk said the remains of three of four missing crew members have been found aboard the Maersk Honam after a fire broke out in one of the vessel’s cargo holds last week. The search for the fourth crew member continues on board, though the search at sea has been suspended. “Given the time passed and the severe fire damages of the vessel we must conclude by now that we have lost all four colleagues who have been missing since the fire onboard Maersk Honam which began on March 6. All four families of our deceased colleagues have been informed,” Maersk said.

Global maritime piracy activity fell to its lowest level in over two decades, according to the latest International Maritime Bureau (IMB) report. The 180 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships reported to the International Chamber of Commerce’s (ICC) IMB in 2017 was the lowest annual number since 1995, when 188 incidents were reported. According to the IMB, pirates boarded 136 vessels in 2017, while 22 attacks were attempted, 16 vessels fired upon and six vessels hijacked.

Somali pirates are suspected of hijacking a bulk carrier ship on one of the world's crucial trade routes, Reuters reported. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations piracy watchdog said on its website it had received a report from a vessel under attack and possibly boarded off the coast of war-ravaged Yemen. It gave no further details. However, a security source working at the Puntland Marine Police Force said the vessel was Tuvalu-flagged and is known as OS35. Graeme Gibbon-Brooks, the head of private company Dryad Maritime Intelligence, said industry sources had confirmed the hijacking. "Vessels transiting the area are advised to exercise extreme caution," UKMTO said, without giving more details.

Somali forces have been sent to free a hijacked ship, a regional police official said on Tuesday.   "We are determined to rescue the ship and its crew. Our forces have set off to Alula. It is our duty to rescue ships hijacked by pirates and we shall rescue it," Abdirahman Mohamud Hassan, director general of Puntland’s marine police forces, told Reuters by phone.   Puntland is a semi-autonomous northern region. Alula is a port town there where pirates have taken the Aris 13 and her eight Sri Lankan crew. (Reporting by Abdiqani Hassan; editing by Andrew Roche; writing by Katharine Houreld)

The Israel Marine Police (IMP) visited SAFE Boats International (SBI) this week to inspect and sea trial the final three vessels of 10 new patrol boats under contract. The delivery finalizes an extensive multiyear vessel procurement planned by the Israel Marine Police since 2012. “Over the past three years the Israel Marine Police partnered with SAFE Boats International to construct 10 vessels for the safety and security of our community. Each vessel has enhanced command and control systems that will increase the Israel Marine Police interoperability within our region…

A Chinese container ship that is one of the world's largest has run aground on the river Elbe near Germany's largest port Hamburg but shipping to the harbour continues as normal, German marine police said on Thursday. It ran aground after suffering a rudder breakdown while approaching Hamburg on Wednesday night, port pilots said. An attempt with tugs to refloat the 399.6-metre-long ship at high tide at midday on Thursday failed, and another attempt will be made during high tide on Thursday night, a marine police spokeswoman said. She said ships heading to and from Hamburg were able to sail past the stationary CSCL Indian Ocean normally but some larger ones might have to slow down.

Pirates have hijacked an oil tanker with eight Sri Lankan crew on board, Somali authorities said on Tuesday, the first time a commercial ship has been seized in the region since 2012. Security forces have been sent to free the Aris 13, a regional police official said late on Tuesday. "We are determined to rescue the ship and its crew. Our forces have set off to Alula. It is our duty to rescue ships hijacked by pirates and we shall rescue it," Abdirahman Mohamud Hassan, director general of Puntland’s marine police forces, told Reuters by phone. Puntland is a semi-autonomous northern region of Somalia. Alula is a port town there where pirates have taken the tanker. Experts said the ship was an easy target and ship owners were becoming lax after a long period of calm.

The number and severity of reported incidents against ships in Asia declined significantly in February compared with both the previous month and previous year period, ReCAAP reported. A total of three incidents of armed robbery against ships were reported in Asia in February 2016. No piracy incident was reported. Graph 1 shows the number of incidents reported between February 2015 and February 2016. The number of incidents reported in February 2016 is lowest among the 12-months period. Further, no incidents involving oil cargo theft was reported in February 2016, continuously from September 2015. All three incidents in February 2016 were Category 4 incidents…

An eight-day training course on the latest tools, processes and procedures in the investigation of marine incidents is taking place in Victoria, Seychelles (7-15 November). The course will focus in particular on how to carry out such investigations in accordance with the mandatory  International Maritime Organization (IMO)  Casualty Investigation Code. William Azuh of the Technical Cooperation Division and Ms Purity Thirimu of IMO Regional Presence Office, Nairobi, are coordinating the training course. Twenty five participants are drawn from the Seychelles Marine Accident Investigation Board, Department of Transport, Seychelles Maritime Safety Administration…