Navy rescues 20 crew members from burning vessel off calabar waterways

Personel of the Nigerian Navy have successfully rescued 20 crew members onboard Motor Vessel (MV) CHIMBA EXPRESS following a fire incident along Calabar waterways.

Director of Naval Information, Commodore Aiwuyor Adams- Aliu who disclosed this in a statement said the swift and coordinated rescue operation was carried out after Nigerian Navy Ship NNS OSE, while on routine sea patrol received a distress call from the vessel at about 1pm on Monday.

He said upon arrival at the scene, naval personnel found out that some crew members had jumped overboard while others were stranded on the exposed deck of the vessel.

The vessel enroute Calabar from Gabon, was said to be conveying scrap materials and other logistics, with a total of 21 persons made up of 14 Nigerians and 7 Cameroonians.

“Through a coordinated effort of NN personnel from NNS OSE, Naval Security Station 030 and Forward Operating Base IBAKA, 20 crew members were rescued while a search operation was initiated for one person who is the Chief Engineer. It has been confirmed that there were only 21 persons onboard MV CHIMBA EXPRESS, ” he said.

While concerted efforts are ongoing to locate the missing Chief Engineer, the Navy said the successful rescue of 20 persons underscores it’s readiness, responsiveness, and humanitarian focus, reinforcing public confidence in the Service’s ability to safeguard Nigeria’s maritime environment.

The statement also credited the successful rescue to the visionary leadership and strategic direction of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, whose vision “is to develop a modern, agile and professional naval force dedicated to securing Nigeria’s maritime domain”.