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US couple fights Red Sea pirates
Yes, when I'm bored, I just sail off to Yemen...but I must admit, they did a nice job.An American couple who fought off Yemenite pirates during a Red Sea crossing in March swaggered into Ashkelon this weekend bearing the story of their daring escape on the high seas. Joseph L. Barry III's and Carol Martini's journey on their private yacht began in 1999 from their quiet, north Boston suburb. But the couple's swashbuckling skills were put to the test when they and another American couple found themselves the victims of modern-day pirates. Lake Winnippisaukee is usually good enough for most of us around here. Over the past seven years, the Red Sea crossing has become dangerous for private boats. Yemenite pirates found they could loot and pillage the luxury yachts to their hearts content, due to a lax Coast Guard presence in the area, say Israeli authorities. According to what the couple told Israeli authorities on their arrival here, Barry and Martini had teamed up with another American couple to make the trip across the Red Sea. Next time folks, Massachusetts Bay. Run over to P'town or through the canal to the Vineyard. Trust me on this. On the evening of March 6, the couples were making their way toward the coast of Yemen. It was sunset when they approached two small, wooden fishing ships commonly used in the area. Not the smartest move I've ever heard of. Suddenly men with guns sprung up from the boats and began firing at them. Martini immediately ran below deck and began dialing SOS codes to nearby ships, while Barry and the couple aboard the second yacht began to plan their defense. As the man aboard the second boat fired his handgun at their attackers, Barry decided to take a desperate move to save his yacht. Turning toward his attackers, he gathered speed and rammed into the small wooden boats at nearly 7 knots. The move devastated the wooden boats and knocked several of the men overboard. Barry shot at least two of the attackers, wounding them enough to deter the others. Yarrr! We be showing ye how its' done! To the Deep Six with ye! The pirates quickly retreated, leaving the couples to patch up their boats and sail to port of Aden. However, the couples found the Aden authorities to be largely indifferent and watched as their complaint was added to a thick pile of similar reports on the local secretary's desk. They should've told them a Koran fell in the water but that probably would've got them jugged. The couples stayed in Aden long enough to have basic repairs made to their yachts, and then set off for what they found to be the nearest "modern world" port — Ashkelon. Hillel Reshef, head of the Ashkelon Port Authority, received an e-mail from the couple explaining the situation and requesting to dock at Ashkelon. "I was not at all surprised," he said. "We have had several of these reports over the past two years." My advice? When sailing near these paradises, have some guns. Lots of guns. Reshef said there had been increasing criminal activity in that area and many Western tourists had been targeted. But almost ending up in "Davy Jones's locker" apparently did not deter Barry and Martini, who set sail for Turkey on Sunday. What is this, their dream "Shitholes of the World" tour? Posted by: tu3031 2005-06-07 |
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