The Nigerian Navy (NN) said its operatives rescued 11 passengers from a sinking speedboat in Bonny River, Rivers State.
It revealed this in a statement by Director of Naval Information (DINFO) Commodore Aiwiyor Adams-Aliu, adding that the boat departed Nembe Waterside Jetty, Port Harcourt en route Coal Beach Jetty, Bonny Island, when it developed engine failure midstream and began taking in water near the Federal Ocean Terminal, Onne.
According to the statement, the victims, comprising six males and five females, were rescued on November 4, by personnel attached to Forward Operating Base (FOB) Bonny.
“The swift response of the FOB Bonny patrol team under heavy rainfall prevented a major tragedy, and all rescued passengers were safely taken to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Jetty for medical checks and subsequently handed over to the Marine Police for reunification with their families,” the Navy said.
The statement also said the Navy intensified its anti-crude oil theft operations across the Niger Delta region with the deactivation of many Illegal Refining Sites (IRS) in four locations on Wednesday, 5 November.
“First, personnel of FOB Escravos deactivated two illegal refining sites at Obodo Omadino Community in Warri South-West Local Government Area of Delta State while the Nigerian Navy Ship PATHFINDER patrol team uncovered and deactivated an illegal refining site containing three cooking ovens, six reservoirs, sacks, jerrycans, and dugout pits filled with stolen crude oil and illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) around the Bakana and Isaka general areas of Rivers State. “Similarly, FOB Bonny personnel dismantled an active illegal refining site at Eyamba Community in Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State, and the Nigerian Navy Ship DELTA patrol team deactivated another site at Opumani Creek in Warri South Local Government Area, Delta State.
“These operations underscore the Nigerian Navy’s renewed efforts under the leadership of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, to ensure maritime safety, protect critical national assets, and promote lawful economic activities while sustaining the efforts to eradicate crude oil theft and all forms of illegality within Nigeria’s maritime domain,” it added.
