Seychelles - As YachtPals reported last April, private yachts are a bad target for the pirates based around Somalia and the Seychelles, and it seemed that the pirates had reached the same conclusion. Although there have been several cases of pirate attacks on ships around the Seychelles islands in the last few weeks, people on cruising boats have been happily ignored for over six months. It appears now that our luck has changed, however. Though still unconfirmed by visual sighting of the boat or crew, YachtPals has now received enough information to report that the Somali pirates have apparently once again made the bad decision to target a cruising yacht at sea. Rachel and Paul Chandler aboard the Rival 38 Lynn Rival are now reportedly captured, and in the hands of pirates.
Though it was first assumed that the couple was having trouble with their sailboat itself, it's known to all that the area has a high risk for piracy recently, and the possibility of a kidnapping by pirates was immediately considered. It now appears that those early concerns were well founded, as it has been reported that Somali pirates today claimed responsibility for the missing yacht, saying they are holding the couple and the Lynn Rival for ransom. Thus far, there seems to be no tangible proof of this being the situation. However, as the days pass without the couple making contact, this appears more an more to be a case of piracy after all.
Paul and Rachel Chandler of Kent, aged 58 and 55, have been married for 26 years, and are very experienced sailors. They have been enjoying retired life aboard their Rival 38 yacht almost full time for over three years, traveling to exotic locations around the world before arriving in the Seychelles in March, which they called a cruising paradise. As you can see from their sailing route, they are no newcomers to pirate infested waters, and they seem to have been fully aware of the enormous dangers involved in sailing these areas. Having chosen to sail through the Gulf of Aden (sometimes referred to as "Pirate Alley") in 2007, they went with a flotilla of other boats for safety. For this latest passage, however, they sailed alone.
The couple timed the trip to Tanzania knowing about the recent escalation of the situation of piracy around the Seychelles. Despite the dangers involved, Paul and Rachel planned to catch up with another cruising couple in Tanzania, who had made the passage from the islands in June. Paul wrote at the time that the other couple "had been planning to leave in May but delayed because of the Somali pirate problem," which indicates he and Rachel were very well aware of the problem of piracy on this particular passage. The couple wrote ominously of the situation during the summer: "Arriving back at the old port [Port Victoria] we had to pass three warships at the entrance, one French, one American and one Canadian. No doubt they are here to deal with the pirates. We also understand that the problem has gone away with the arrival of the SE winds. The seas around the Seychelles are now too rough for the pirates to operate in."
The British foreign ministry says that it is now urgently trying to locate Paul and Rachel Chandler and their yacht Lynn Rival, which according to them "left the Seychelles on October 22 and were going on a 150 nautical-mile passage southwest to the Amirante Islands, en route to Tanzania" (YachtPals could not confirm this route plan). The British foreign ministry spokesman also said that they were "in touch with the family in the UK and the Seychelles coast guard, which continues to monitor the situation and has conducted a search of the area," adding that the Seychelles coast guard "have found nothing so far."
In fact, the Seychelles coast guard cannot confirm that the yacht Lynn Rival was taken by pirates at all. Coast Guard commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Michael Rosette said Tuesday that they "are monitoring the situation and at the present moment there is no confirmation that the Lynn Rival has been taken by pirates, even if the probability of hijacking is high." However, a pirate named Mohamed Shakir told The Times newspaper today that his associates had brought an abrupt halt to the British couple’s round-the-world tour, and that they are holding Paul and Rachel Chandler for ransom.
YachtPals will have more on this situation as it develops.
- by Kim Hampton exclusively for YachtPals.com
Photo above: The yacht Lynn Rival sailing in the Indian Ocean.
Related Piracy Articles:
- Piracy and Pirates (all articles on pirates and piracy)
- Seychelles
- Pirates Attack Yachts near the Seychelles
- Tanit Yacht Captured by Pirates near the Seychelles
- Carra D'as Yacht Crew Rescued from Pirates (French Commandos Free French Hostages)
- Le Ponant Yacht Crew Freed from Pirates (French Rescue Operation)
- Yacht attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia (German couple kept hostage by pirates)
- Somalia Pirates - Finally Gone Too Far
- Somalia Piracy Update
- Piracy in Somalia (all articles on pirates and piracy near Somalia)
- Pirate Attacks on Yachts - Piracy Warnings 2009 (including yacht piracy map)
YachtPals Original Boating and Sailing News By YachtPals
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