What Crew Members Say About Orange-Frost

On May 30, 2025, the merchant vessel 'Orange Frost' fell prey to a brazen pirate attack off the southern coast of Nigeria, approximately 110 nautical miles from shore, in a region between Nigeria and São Tomé and Príncipe. The ship, which departed from Douala on May 29, was on its way to Matadi when it was assailed by a group of seven armed individuals who reportedly used firearms during the boarding. Most of the crew managed to take refuge in the on-board citadel, however, two sailors were caught in the assault—one sustaining injuries during the attack and the other, the second engineer, a Russian national, was abducted by the pirates. The situation was monitored in real-time through the vessel’s CCTV system, providing crucial insights into the event. As of May 31, the Maritime Domain Awareness for Trade – Gulf of Guinea (MDAT-GoG) confirmed that the vessel had been thoroughly searched, verifying that no assailants remained on board. Unfortunately, the pirates inflicted damage on various bridge equipment before making their escape. In the aftermath, local authorities boarded the 'Orange Frost' to support the remaining crew and escorted the ship to a designated safe harbor. This incident marks the second piracy attack within Nigeria's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in just five weeks, following a previous attempt on April 22, where another vessel was targeted, but the crew successfully fortified their position in the citadel, thwarting the pirates' intrusion. Alarmingly, this marks the fifth piracy-related incident in the region since the start of the year, highlighting an ongoing trend of maritime insecurity in the area.