Luxury Seabourn cruiseliner attacked by pirates

Friday, 08 Nov, 2005 0

Pirates attached the luxury cruise liner Seabourn Spirit with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, Saturday off the East African coast by Somalia.

The pirates tried to board the Seabourn Spirit, but the ship outran the two-armed boats, in addition to use a sonic weapon to help ward off the attackers developed for the military after the 2000 attack on the USS Cole in Yemen as a way to keep operators of small boats from approaching U.S. warships. The device blasts earsplitting noise in a directed beam.

The 151 passengers, mostly Americans with some Australians and Europeans, were gathered in a lounge for their safety after being woken by the sound of the gunfire. The only injury was to one crewmember that was injured by shrapnel.

Seabourn Cruise Lines will re-evaluate whether to continue cruises off the coast of Somalia following the attack. President Deborah Natansohn said: “We’re obviously evaluating the situation now and we’ll take that decision at a later point.”

She told CNN: “We do know, of course, that the Indian Ocean is an area that we have to be more alert, and we were traveling through the area in a high state of alert.

“We train for all kinds of emergencies on cruise ships so we are prepared for anything,” Natansohn added.

The Spirit was en route to Mombasa, Kenya, on a 16-day cruise from Alexandria, Egypt. Seychelles in the Indian Ocean and Singapore are the other scheduled stops.

Several ships a month are attacked or hijacked of the Samalian coast, with valuables stolen and crews held for ransom.

David

Palladium Hotel Group is a renowned Spanish hotel chain that first emerged towards the end of the 1960s. Currently present...

MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) is an S&P 500® global entertainment company with national and international locations featuring best-in-class hotels...

Cunard is the operator of luxury cruise ships Queen Mary 2®, Queen Victoria® and Queen Elizabeth®. Renowned for impeccable White...

Atout France guides and supports the French regions with their development strategy and helps set up investment projects in order...

We are the UK’s leading Canada travel experts Canadian Affair Company Information Founded in 1995, Canadian Affair offers an...

Greater Fort Lauderdale’s assortment of adventures awaits you. Whether you want to relax on the beach as the sound of...

Babble is a leading technology business that is reimagining how we do work. Founded in 2001, the company works with...

We make travel accessible for everyone We believe everyone should be free to experience the world. For us, there’s no...

Swallows and Amazons is a Brazilian adventure tour company run by the husband and wife team of Tania and Mark...

Welcome to Qatar Airways Qatar Airways is proud to be one of the youngest global airlines to serve all...

If you’re thinking of cruising, there’s a very good chance you’re considering a Carnival cruise. Growing since our founding in...

Our Mission Ecommerce has transformative powers, and we believe everyone should be able to take part. But outdated solutions and...

Holiday Extras is the UK market leader in airport parking, airport hotels, worldwide airport lounges, destination car hire, airport transfers...

ECOMMPAY is an international payment service provider and direct bank card acquirer, engineering bespoke payment solutions for clients worldwide. Our...

From the beginning, ATI’s philosophy has been “innovation, not duplication.“ Developing specialized technology solutions to connect over 30,000 accommodation, attracti...

Air Transat is Canada’s number one leisure airline. It flies to some 60 international destinations in more than 25 countries...

The State of Michigan is blessed with the riches of unspoiled nature: the nation’s longest freshwater coastline, lakes that feel like...

Destination British Columbia (Destination BC) is a Provincially funded, industry-led Crown corporation that supports a strong and competitive future for BC’s...