Pirates attack Maersk Alabama again

On Tuesday, pirates approached the Maersk Alabama, about 200 miles north of Madagascar, marking the third attack on the US flagged container ship, according to The Maritime Executive.


The ship’s owner said in a statement that four pirates approached the ship in a small skiff, with hook ladders. The ship avoided hijacking and kidnapping this time around, thanks to an onboard security team who fired warning shots to scare the pirates away and evasive manoeuvres by the ships’ captain.


In April 2009, the Maersk Alabama was attacked in waters off the coast of Somalia. During the attack the ship’s captain was taken hostage on a lifeboat where four pirates held him until US Navy snipers killed three. The fourth pirate, who was on board the Maersk Alabama negotiating the captain’s release was arrested and just last month was sentenced to more than 33 years in prison.


The US flagged Maersk Alabama continued its trip to the Kenyan port of Mombasa.
(Source:http://www.cargonewsasia.com)