Even as the global shipping community has cautioned ship owners, masters and crew calling at ports of three West Africa nations, operatives of government agencies in Lagos ports are now scared stiff of contacting the deadly virus on board incoming ships.
Statutorily, officers of Nigerian Immigration Service, Quarantine Services, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) are among the few that are permitted to board ships.
Even as the global shipping community has cautioned ship owners, masters and crew calling at ports of three West Africa nations, operatives of government agencies in Lagos ports are now scared stiff of contacting the deadly virus on board incoming ships.
Statutorily, officers of Nigerian Immigration Service, Quarantine Services, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) are among the few that are permitted to board ships.
But some operatives of these agencies, who spoke to our correspondent yesterday on condition of anonymity, expressed fears about their being ‘first contact’ with ship’s crew upon arrival at the port.
Specifically, they complain of lack of awareness for port users and also lack of protection for them (operatives).
An immigration personnel who pleaded anonymity made reference to what is currently obtainable at the airports where Immigration, Customs and other officers are given protective gears before interacting with in-bound and out-bound passengers on international flights.
He also made reference to the ‘red alert’ that has been issued by three global shipping bodies namely: International Chamber of Shipping, International Maritime Employers’ Council, and the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) on ships calling at ports in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
He raised alarm that the fact that the alert has been given means that the same applies to Nigeria. “If they sail into those countries and finally arrive in Nigeria, what happens to us, and we are not even worried about it, ships come into Nigeria from those countries, there are a lot of seaborne commercial activities between West African nations”, he observed.
Also an employee of NIMASA, who personally called Shipping Position Daily yesterday on account of the story that was published in our yesterday’s edition concerning the global ‘red flag’, expressed the same fear.
The NIMASA staff , who is one of those who were recently designated as Maritime Labour Convention 2006 Enforcement Officers, equally complained about lack of awareness in the shipping community, even as he expressed worry that NIMASA has not even thought of given them any protective gears against the virus or carried out any drill about what to expect or look out for when boarding ships .
Shipping Position Daily had published exclusively yesterday that the international shipping community has placed ship owners, masters and crews on red alert while transiting Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea on account of the deadly Ebola virus.
The three nations have recorded huge fatalities on account of the spiraling deadly Ebola virus that has so far killed hundreds of its victims.
Three global shipping organizations, that is, International Chamber of Shipping, International Maritime Employers’ Council, and the ITF International Transport Workers’ Federation had issued guidance to their members on the risks posed to ships’ crews calling in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. They have also advised that all vessel Masters and crews calling on these countries take precautionary measures to protect themselves from the spread of the deadly disease.
Specifically, the ICS, IMEC, and ITF urged that on all such vessels: the Master should ensure that the crew are aware of the risks, how the virus can be spread and how to reduce the risk; the ISPS requirements on ensuring that unauthorized personnel do not board the vessel should be strictly enforced throughout the duration of the vessel being in port; the Master should give careful consideration to granting any shore leave whilst in impacted ports; the shipowner/operator should avoid making crew changes in the ports of an affected country; and after departure the crew should be aware of the symptoms and report any occurring symptoms immediately to the person in charge of medical care.
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