Spanish tuna vessel assists Seychelles fishermen in distress, two boats still missing

A Seychelles fishing boat called Prosperity, which sent out a distress call on Monday morning after encountering mechanical difficulties, was saved from disaster by a Spanish-flagged tuna boat which was in the vicinity. The boat was fishing north of Mahé, the main island of the Seychelles, with two fishermen on board when it reportedly experienced engine failure. Despite the rescue of the Prosperity, two other fishing boats are still missing in Seychelles waters since the beginning of June, the Marylaure and Haifa Junior. The Seychelles Coast Guard have last week launched operations involving both aircraft and patrol vessels to find the two missing boats.

The owners of both missing vessels informed the maritime authorities of the absence of their boats after discovering that they had not come back by their scheduled return dates. Captain Valmont explained that aboard both boats, the maritime surveillance system was not working and that this made it more difficult for search and rescue teams to locate them. This is the first time that three boats were in a situation of distress [at the same time]; this puts a lot of pressure on the coastguards who are forced to stop an operation to get to another.

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