- A fast intervention boat
By Anthony Nwachukwu
Following a distress call to the Director-General, Dr. Bashir Jamoh, the Deep Blue team of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has rescued a total of seven distressed workers aboard vessels in Lagos.
The safety officer on MT Alima had at 06*20.9’’N,003*21.9’’E (coordinates) at the single buoy mooring area in Lagos, at about 11.30pm on Wednesday, reported that while a private company was cleaning the tanks of the vessel, eight of the cleaners developed complications due to insufficient oxygen in the tank.
Jamoh immediately directed the NIMASA head of the deep blue project and head of the maritime safety department to deploy a fast intervention boat for rescue operations, as well as immediate medical attention to the survivors, according to a statement from the NIMASA Head of Public Relations, Edward Osagie.
The agency took the seven survivors to the military hospital at Ikoyi for medical attention, where they were recovering at various degrees, with five of them now stable, one has a fractured leg and the other still in critical condition.
Meanwhile, Jamoh has reassured the maritime community of NIMASA’s ever-ready 24-hour vigilance to respond to distress calls using any of the procured air, land and sea assets, just as he urged operators to be meticulous about basic safety standards at all times.
He advised anyone working on board vessels to update themselves with required training that complies with Standards of Training Certification and Watch-keeping (STCW), in line with the revised Manila Convention.
