Blind Passengers Hiding Behind a Wheel for Ten Days – NRK Vestfold and Telemark – Local News, TV and Radio

This weekend, NRK was able to speak about the four Nigerian men, who survived ten days behind the helm of the Norwegian-owned Champion Pula.

The blind passengers were discovered on arrival in Las Palmas, but after much deliberation they were allowed to continue to Herøya in Porsgrunn.

There, they were handed over to the police on October 17 of this year.

On Sunday there was also a new incident with a ship coming from the same port in Nigeria.

British Army Special Forces boarded the tanker “Nave Andromeda” as blind passengers are said to have threatened the crew after being discovered.

Will contact more coastal states

The Norwegian Shipowners Association is concerned.

– We will remind all coastal states of their responsibilities and duties. It is completely unacceptable to sail around the world with blind passengers on board. For both parties, says John Hammersmark.

He is the Director of Safety and Emergency Preparedness at the Norwegian Shipowners Association.

Hammersmark has a hard time saying whether activity has increased, but fears they are dark numbers.

– We do not receive notification of all situations with us. We do not have any reporting function. I guess there is a degree of darkness here, which makes the problem bigger than we assume.

Difficult situation for boats

Blind passengers are very difficult to handle on board, says Hammersmark.

– Boats like this are not suitable to serve people other than the normal crew.

In many places it is also demanding for ships to prevent blind passengers from getting on board.

– In some ports it is possible to get help to do these things. There are several coastal states in the world that fight corruption and crime.

The size of two “American suitcases”

The Chairman of the Board and majority shareholder of Champion Tankers, Karl L. Kvalheim, owns the Champion Pula ship.

He says the small cavity behind the helm of the huge ships is completely unprotected and fills up quickly with water during storms.

– It’s like two big American suitcases. That’s the volume we’re talking about, says Kvalheim.

He himself knows of only two specific cases in which people have kept hidden behind the helm of their ships.

But Kvalheim fears that there have been many accidents with blind passengers in transport.

– When we have experienced it twice, it certainly applies to many others as well.

The company will further strengthen its security routines.

– It is said alone. Now we have another ship on its way to Nigeria. This time we will be absolutely sure that no one has hidden behind the helm of the ship before continuing.