NINE “VEGA 5” CREW MEMBERS LOST AT SEA

Nine of the crew of the hijacked Mozambican fishing vessel the “Vega 5” are believed to be lost at sea, following clashes between Somali pirates and the Indian navy last Saturday night.A pirate gang seized the “Vega 5” in the Mozambique Channel on 27 December and took it northwards to the Somali coast. They then turned it into a pirate mother ship used to tow and to refuel the skiffs used by the pirates to attack merchant shipping.On Friday, the “Vega 5” pirates tried to attack a container ship, the “MV Vancouver Bridge”. Indian naval aircraft, responding to the distress signal from the “Vancouver Bridge”, spotted the “Vega 5”, and two fast vessels of the Indian navy gave chase.They caught up with the “Vega 5” on Saturday night, and there was an exchange of fire with the pirates. In this shootout, the “Vega 5” caught fire, apparently because drums of fuel stored on deck were hit.In the darkness, pirates and the kidnapped crew members jumped into the water from the blazing ship. The Indian vessels picked up 74 people – 61 pirates and 13 crew members, 12 Mozambicans and one Indonesian.The original crew consisted of 24 people – 19 Mozambicans, three Indonesians and two Spaniards (including the captain). The two Spaniards are still being held prisoner somewhere in Somalia: doubtless the pirates hope to extort a heavy ransom for them. The remaining nine crew members, seven Mozambicans and two Indonesians, are believed to have jumped into the sea when the “Vega 5” caught fire, but they are not among those rescued. Now, five days later, there must be little hope of still finding them alive.According to a report in Thursday’s issue of the Maputo daily “Noticias”, the 13 rescued crew members are now in the Indian port of Mumbai. Their state of health is said to be good, although three of them required medical treatment for injuries sustained during the Saturday night gun battle and fire. The Mozambican embassy in India is assisting the crew members in coordination with the companies Pescamar and Pescanova. Pescamar is the Mozambican-Spanish joint venture that operated the “Vega 5”, while Pescanova is the Spanish partner in the joint venture.