dan9999
10-27-2009, 12:29 PM
British Couple Hijacked by Somali Pirates
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
The Times of London
Somali pirates said Tuesday they have seized a British couple and their yacht in the Indian Ocean during their round-the-world voyage. The couple had been missing for four days.
Fears for the safety of Paul and Rachel Chandler from Tunbridge Wells have been mounting since the emergency beacon aboard their 38-foot yacht the Lynn Rival went off last week.
“We have captured two old British [people], a man and woman in the Indian Ocean, they were on a small boat that we have hijacked,” a pirate called Mohamed Shakir told The Times of London by phone from Haradheere in Somalia.
The pirate added that the two were “healthy and in our hands” but would not say where they would be taken. Ransom demands are likely to follow.
The Chandlers left the Seychelles on Thursday, heading for Tanzania via the Amirante Islands. Their emergency position-indicating radio beacon was activated on Friday.
Andrew Mwangura, head of the East Africa Seafarers’ Assistance Programme based in the Kenyan port of Mombassa, confirmed that the Lynn Rival was missing with two British crew on board.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are aware of the report. We are investigating urgently.”
The couple, both in their late 50s, have been sailing around the world after selling up in Britain. The last message on their blog, entered shortly before the distress signal was sent, reads simply: “PLEASE RING SARAH”.
The previous entry, written before leaving the Seychelles, was full of preparations for their voyage. “We’ll be at sea for 8 to 12 days, maybe 14 as we are now getting into the period of transition between the south monsoon and north monsoon, so the trade winds will be less reliable and we may get more light winds," they wrote.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
The Times of London
Somali pirates said Tuesday they have seized a British couple and their yacht in the Indian Ocean during their round-the-world voyage. The couple had been missing for four days.
Fears for the safety of Paul and Rachel Chandler from Tunbridge Wells have been mounting since the emergency beacon aboard their 38-foot yacht the Lynn Rival went off last week.
“We have captured two old British [people], a man and woman in the Indian Ocean, they were on a small boat that we have hijacked,” a pirate called Mohamed Shakir told The Times of London by phone from Haradheere in Somalia.
The pirate added that the two were “healthy and in our hands” but would not say where they would be taken. Ransom demands are likely to follow.
The Chandlers left the Seychelles on Thursday, heading for Tanzania via the Amirante Islands. Their emergency position-indicating radio beacon was activated on Friday.
Andrew Mwangura, head of the East Africa Seafarers’ Assistance Programme based in the Kenyan port of Mombassa, confirmed that the Lynn Rival was missing with two British crew on board.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are aware of the report. We are investigating urgently.”
The couple, both in their late 50s, have been sailing around the world after selling up in Britain. The last message on their blog, entered shortly before the distress signal was sent, reads simply: “PLEASE RING SARAH”.
The previous entry, written before leaving the Seychelles, was full of preparations for their voyage. “We’ll be at sea for 8 to 12 days, maybe 14 as we are now getting into the period of transition between the south monsoon and north monsoon, so the trade winds will be less reliable and we may get more light winds," they wrote.