Pirate attack: SA six flown to London

2005-11-07 15:28

Johannesburg - Six South Africans aboard a luxury liner attacked by pirates off the coast of Somali on Saturday are safe in London, foreign affairs spokesperson Ronnie Mamoepa said on Monday.

"They were flown from the Seychelles to London," Mamoepa said.

He said their names could not be released until the six had given their permission.

However, an AP photographer has identified two of them as Charles and Elizabeth Forsdick. It is not known where they're from.

Mamoepa said their return to South Africa was a personal matter and one that had to be decided between them and the owners of the cruise liner.

"It is their decision where to go and what to do from London," he said.

The South Africans were among about 300 passengers who survived a weekend pirate attack on a luxury liner bound for Kenya, the Cape Times website reported on Monday.

Passengers 'fine'

It said the ship's purser declined to name the six South Africans or to reveal which cities they were from.

All 151 passengers and 161 crew were "fine".

One passenger on board the luxury liner, bound for Kenya from Egypt, was slightly injured in the machine-gun fire and rocket-propelled grenade attack on Saturday.

He was taken to hospital once the ship docked in the Seychelles.

Five heavily armed men in two boats opened fire on the Seabourn Spirit just after 5am as the liner cruised about 160km off the Somali coast.

According to Bahamas-flagged Seabourn Spirit spokesperson Bruce Good, the men then tried to board the ship in a bid to rob passengers and crew.

He said the captain, Sven Erik Pedersen, prevented the men from climbing on board by trying to ram into one of their eight-metre boats.

Changed course

Instead of sounding the usual alarm, the captain urged the passengers, including the six South Africans, 48 Americans, 21 Canadians, 19 Germans, 19 Australians and 22 from the United Kingdom, to stay inside the central lounge.

He then changed the course of the ship and sped away from the attacking boats.

United States, British and Seychellois authorities are investigating the incident.

Mamoepa said the cruise ship arrived and docked in Port Victoria, Seychelles early on Monday - "just after midnight".

"It could not dock in Mombassa," he said.

While in the Seychelles, experts removed a grenade embedded in a passenger cabin, reports said.

- SAPA