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2009 Worldwide piracy figures

A total of 406 incidents of piracy and armed robbery have been
reported in the 2009 annual piracy report issued by the ICC
International Maritime Bureau-s Piracy Reporting Centre.

The last time piracy figures crossed 400 incidents was in 2003.
2009 is also the third successive year that the number of reported
incidents have increased with 239, 263 and 293 incidents reported in
2006, 2007 and 2008 respectively.

The report states that worldwide in 2009, 153 vessels were boarded, 49
vessels were hijacked, 84 attempted attacks and 120 vessels fired upon
compared to 46 ships fired upon in 2008. A total of 1052 crew were
taken hostage. Sixty-eight crew were injured in the various incidents
and eight crew killed. The level of violence towards the crew has
increased along with the number of crew injuries.

The total number of incidents attributed to the Somali pirates stands
at 217 with 47 vessels hijacked and 867 crewmembers taken hostage.
Somalia accounts for more than half of the 2009 figures, with the
attacks continuing to remain opportunistic in nature.

In 2008, 111 vessels were targeted by Somali pirates resulting in 42
hijackings. Whilst the number of 2009 incidents has almost doubled,
the number of successful hijackings is proportionately less. This can
be directly attributed to the increased presence and coordination of
the international navies along with heightened awareness and robust
action by the Masters in transiting these waters....

....2009 has however seen a significant shift in the area of attacks
off Somalia. While the 2008 attacks were predominantly focused in the
Gulf of Aden, 2009 has witnessed more vessels also being targeted along the
east coast of Somalia. Since October increased activity has been
observed in the Indian Ocean with 33 incidents reported, including 13
hijackings. Thirteen of these last quarter incidents occurred east of
the recommended east of 60 deg. east including four hijacked vessels.
Many of these attacks have occurred at distances of approximately 1000
nautical miles off Mogadishu....

....Twenty eight incidents were reported for Nigeria in 2009. Of these
21 vessels were boarded, three vessels were fired upon, one vessel was
hijacked and three Masters reported an attempted attack on their
vessel. One crew was reported killed as the robbers tried to escape
after looting the vessel. Vessels attacked include, general cargo,
bulk carriers, reefers, and all types of tankers. The majority of
incidents related to the oil industry and fishing vessels go
unreported. Information from external sources would suggest at least a
further 30 unreported attacks occurred in Nigeria in 2009....

....Indonesia is again applauded for their tireless efforts in curbing
piracy and armed robbery in its waters. There continues to be a year
on year decline in the number of incidents, with 15 incidents for
2009, the majority opportunistic in nature. Only two incidents were
reported in the Malacca Straits the same as in 2008.

This is the second year in a row where incidents in the Singapore
Straits have increased. Nine incidents were reported in 2009 as
compared to six in 2008. Of these six vessels were boarded and three
reported attempted attacks.

Thirteen incidents were reported by ships steaming in the South China
Seas. This is the highest number of incidents in the previous five
years. Of these eleven were boarded, one vessel was hijacked and one
reported an attempted attack. In some attacks the bridge crew was
physically removed from the bridge for a short period of time leaving
the vessel effectively -Not Under Command-.

Even though there has been significant improvement in the safety and
security of the SE Asian and Far East waters there still remains an
underlying potential for incidents to increase without any prior
warning. The pressure on the pirates and the robbers has to be
maintained by the littoral states and the constant physical presence
in the waters.

Bangladesh –Chittagong- has shown a slight increase in the number of
attacks as compared to 2008. Most of these have been opportunistic. Of
the 17 vessels attacked, 14 were boarded and ship stores stolen. Most
of the incidents have taken place within the Chittagong anchorage.

Thirty seven incidents have been reported from countries in the South
American continent as compared to 14 in 2008.

Twelve incidents have occurred in the anchorage of Callao in Peru in
2009 compared to five the previous year. Other countries affected are
Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Haiti and Venezuela. Most of
these attacks were successful and were carried out while the vessels
were berthed in port or while at anchor. This is a similar trend as in
2008.

The IMB strongly urges all Shipmasters and Owners to report all
incidents of actual and attempted piracy and armed robbery to the IMB
PRC. This is the first step in the response chain and vital in
ensuring that adequate resources are allocated by governments to deal
with the problem....

Source- Extract from ICC International Maritime Bureau news