Couple Captured by Somalian Pirates

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Holden Caulfield

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I am of course talking about the couple who have been captured by Somali pirates. I had the misfortune of hearing one of their relatives on radio four saying how distressing it was to hear derogatory comments about the stupidity of sailing a yacht in to pirate infested seas, she even said that “Tangiers was a paradise” go figure
If these individuals are so dense as not to be able to make a risk assessment should they be sailing at all?, furthermore should they foot the bill for the rescue?
More to the point should they be held personally accountable in a court of law if one of their rescuers is killed or injured in a rescue attempt?
 
Holden Caulfield said:
If these individuals are so dense as not to be able to make a risk assessment should they be sailing at all?
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There are rules on this forum that stop us from making personal attacks on other members so I'm not going to say what my initial reaction was to reading your post. However, if you were to put a P at the beginning of rat you'd get the idea. :cuckoo:
 
Personally i think Holden has a very valid point.

It's not as if the pirate infestation near somalia hasn't been in the headlines on a regular basis for the last few years it is?

Yes, it must be very distressing for the relatives, but at the same time that does not excuse the fact that they did sail into some of the most dangerous waters in the world.
 
There are rules on this forum that stop us from making personal attacks on other members so I'm not going to say what my initial reaction was to reading your post. However, if you were to put a P at the beginning of rat you'd get the idea.
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So lets have your 'well read responce' or do you limit yourself veiled attacks on other forum members who think differently to you?

Lets have a debate , go on I dare you ;)
 
I'm not going to get in to a debate with you but I don't see why a couple shouldn't sail a yacht off the coast of the Seychelles. It is perfectly legal and acceptable to do so. Yes there is a risk in that area from pirates and they have been unlucky but why should that mean that they don't deserve to be rescued?

What your saying about this couple seems the same (in my opinion) to saying a female dressed provocatively in Liverpool town centre who gets attacked or raped deserved what she gets because Liverpool is a known area of crime. Alternatively, a motorcyclist rides his bike in very wet conditions and falls off and injures himself. Does he deserve to get NHS treatment because he took the risk of riding when he knew there was a high risk of having an accident? Do you smoke? Would you expect to get treatment for cancer on the NHS? Or not because you took the risk of smoking?

I agree that people have to be careful in what they do and assess the risks before doing it. How do you know this couple didn't make every precaution possible? I'm assuming you don't because nothing I've read in the press today gives that kind of detail.

Bad things happen in the world but if you let them stop you doing the things you want to do in life then the bad guys have won and this world is the worse for it.
 
-Rob- said:
What your saying about this couple seems the same (in my opinion) to saying a female dressed provocatively in Liverpool town centre who gets attacked or raped deserved what she gets because Liverpool is a known area of crime. Alternatively, a motorcyclist rides his bike in very wet conditions and falls off and injures himself. Does he deserve to get NHS treatment because he took the risk of riding when he knew there was a high risk of having an accident? Do you smoke? Would you expect to get treatment for cancer on the NHS? Or not because you took the risk of smoking?
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OK they're fair points, but sometimes a little common sense goes a long way too. Of course the motorcyclist who rides fast in very wet conditions and has an accident should be treated, but if he'd applyied a little common in the first place then he and the NHS could of avoided the issue. Same as theres parts of London I wouldn't walk with a camera at night, would I deserve help if I was mugged? of course, would a little common sense of avoided it, probably

Hugh
 
ATTENTION: Motorways are dangerous, stop driving on them.

Virtually anything you do is dangerous, or has possible undeseriable consquences.
They were unlucky.
 
-Rob- said:
Yes there is a risk in that area from pirates and they have been unlucky but why should that mean that they don't deserve to be rescued?

What your saying about this couple seems the same (in my opinion) to saying a female dressed provocatively in Liverpool town centre who gets attacked or raped deserved what she gets because Liverpool is a known area of crime. Alternatively, a motorcyclist rides his bike in very wet conditions and falls off and injures himself. Does he deserve to get NHS treatment because he took the risk of riding when he knew there was a high risk of having an accident? Do you smoke? Would you expect to get treatment for cancer on the NHS? Or not because you took the risk of smoking?
.
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None of those situations would involve someone else putting their lives at serious risk in order to rescue them.:shrug:
 
Im fairly sure when they were planning this part of the journey they were warned that that area of water was dangerous, however, the water they were sailing was well outside the usual pirating area. the usual pirate targets are big vessels with cargo on them that they can then claim a ransom from the company for financial reward, with 2 individuals in a boat arent really the target as they will struggle to get any form of ransom from them (countries dont tend to pay a ransom, whereas a company probably will (via insurance etc?).

chances are that they;ll eventually be released without harm a few weeks/months down the line (pirates only tend to kill/harm when someone wades in guns blazing or if someone disses thier parrot...).

as to whether they were stupid in sailing that water im not sure
 
the 2 individuals in a boat arent really the target
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Erm, yes they are!!!! -That’s why they have been kidnapped in the first place (D0H!!),

The pirates have no idea who they are or who they work for, it’s a big leap of faith to say they will be released once their captors find out they are just as dopy old couple who are sailing around in their dotage.

Furthermore the analogy to driving a motorcycle at high speed in the wet is a good one; it comes down to responsibility and the taking of same.

It is well known that pirates are extending the range of their operations; a cursory look at the BBC website would inform even the dimmest of mariners that the route they were taking was dangerous.

As it stands all sorts of assets are being tasked to track and find information and at some stage a military option will be considered, it is at that point that someone’s son or daughter will be asked to put their lives on the line to rescue these reckless fools who decided that their right to visit Shangri-La was more important than a rational assessment of risk.
 
perhaps i should have said 'usual' target (lets face it freight and tankers are the pirates stable diet for the most part).

whilst i agree that the area is dangerous and personally wouldnt have sailed that course, isnt it correct that we all make mistakes, and whilst we perhaps shouldnt expect someone to come along, pick us up and dust us off, surely as citizens of a civilised society thats what is done, we help others in distress, we dont turn our backs on somoene because they have made a mistake and put themselves in danger, and yes that might mean someone else putting themselves at risk, but then surely those rescuers are fully understanding and accepting of the risks that thier job entails before taking the job.
 
Just heard on the news that the Royal Navy has found the yacht and the couple are not in it.
 
omg
..... if you were given the oportunity of sailing in the indian ocean and your risk assessment said there was a 1:100 chance of trouble would you stay at home???

i get your point but life would be very boring if no one took any chances

i'm envious.....and remember they have been living afloat for years...so they probably thought they'd be ok or they'd have come home and put their names down for sheltered accommodation
 
foodpoison said:
Put it like this.
If one of your relatives was captured and held hostage, would you feel the same then?
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I actually think he would!

They would call him up asking for help and he would say 'you aint getting my money, i bloody told you it was dangerous to sail there' and then put the phone down and pull the plug out of the wall LOL
 
They knew the risks but thats not to say they should be left to rot, when we transited the Pirate zone we took as many precautions as possible, welding "L" brackets around the ship at main deck and hanging razor wire off them and travelled in as part of a convoy. We also took on "Security Guards" though they weren't armed :suspect:.

The thing is if the pirates really want to board a ship there is very little you can do, a friend was transiting the same area and Pirates tried to board, they managed to stop them using the fire hoses, the Pirates got bored and picked off an easier target and went for the ship behind them, both ships were being escorted as part of a naval convoy, yet a ship was still hijacked...................
 
This batty old couple not worth owt eh, well the pirates want $7.000.000 for them, looks like they have other ideas.

I wonder if this batty duo will donate any of the money they receive for their story from the redtops to the cost of rescuing them.

Bet they dont ....;)
 
It would cost a damn sight more than that to do the search & any rescue attempt.

Sell their stories now and pay the ransom with the proceeds. That way the money goes from one bunch of vultures with questionable morals (The media) to another bunch of vultures with questionable morals (The Pirates)
 
Well I reckon they should set up a couple of Q ships and blow the fuppers out of the water.
 
I dunno what might happen to them, there is no way in hell the pirates will get 7 million for them. Their family havent got the money and the government sure as hell won't pay it. I think the pirstes ****ed up by assuming "they have a yacht, they must be rich." I guess they'll realise they aint gonna get anything for them and let them go eventually, possibly with a crew from a tanker or summat.
 
Sorry, imo I got no time for people like this. As mentioned they were warned, they KNEW what the risks were and they took them. If you let a child get into danger you would be called irresponsible, and irresponsible are what these two are.
 
fabs said:
Love the attitude of some, they took a risk and got into trouble so **** 'em! Nice.
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They certainly did take a risk, a risk in fact that was not really in their favour to start with :shrug: But it seems they Ignored the law of averages, history of that area will prove that. A risk assessment should have been put in place first off, this would in theory work out costs, the time, trouble and effort required from others should things go pear-shaped, it seems clear to me that it wasnt done.
 
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