Thai
fishermen rescued off the Yemen coast by a Sattahip-based Royal Thai Navy
ship arrive at Suvarnabhumi International Airport Nov. 22.
Patcharapol Panrak
Seven Thai fishermen rescued off the Yemen coast by a
Sattahip-based Royal Thai Navy ship participating in an international patrol
against Somali pirates arrived home late last month.
Friends and family welcomed the Thai crew members of the
Sirichai Nava 11 at Suvarnabhumi International Airport Nov. 22, 17 days
after they and 16 others were found floating 15 miles off the Yemen coast by
the HTMS Similan. The boat, owned by Sirachi Fishing Co., was reportedly
attacked by 10 Somali pirates Nov. 3.
The Nava 11 was later sunk by an unknown vessel and the
crew was left floating for four days. The Similan, which rescued them, is on
a 98-day patrol mission with the HTMS Pattani to help police shipping lanes
in the Gulf of Aden where 32 Thai vessels have been attacked by pirates from
Somalia in the past year.
The Pattani had earlier searched with helicopters for the
Nava 11 after reports of the hijacking, but found neither the fishing boat
nor the crew. The Similan, having traveled 400 miles, arrived the next
morning and returned to the attack site to pluck seven Thais, 15 Cambodians
and one Yemeni police officer from the sea.
Several crew members sustained chemical burns and
swallowed large amounts of contaminated water and were treated at a hospital
in Oman before returning home. Survivors said one other Thai and four other
Yemeni policemen were missing after the hijacking.
