Portuguese Navy Searching Containership After Report of Boarders

 

The Portuguese Navy confirmed earlier media reports that an operation is underway off the coast after a containership requested assistance. The vessel said there were boarders aboard, and unconfirmed media reports said at least two crewmembers had been locked in the engine room.

The vessel, Odysseus (39,420 dwt), is managed by Cosmoship of Greece and was underway last night, September 3, from Virgo to Malga. The alert requesting assistance went out around 2300 local time while the vessel was off the Algarve coast near the city of Lagos, Portugal.

Built in 2006, the vessel has a capacity for 2,824 TEU. It is registered in Liberia.

The Navy reports the containership diverted to a position approximately six nautical miles off the coast, and that a team from the Navy and National Maritime Authority boarded the vessel. The media reports are that both patrol boats and a helicopter were involved in the operation. 

The Navy reports that the vessel is diverting to the port of Sines for further inspection. The media said that the two crewmembers were released from the engine room and that an initial search did not locate the boarders.

Speculation is that it was a drug cartel that boarded the ship. Portugal’s Correio da Manhã tabloid is saying that there were two individuals armed and wearing hoods spotted on the ship. They are thought to have fled before the authorities arrived to assist the vessel.