An Irish engineer on a tugboat seized by pirates off Somalia is unharmed and has access to food and water, according to the ship's Danish owner.
Fred Parle (68), of Aughnamore, Co Sligo, along with four Russians and a British captain, was on the Svitzer Korsakovwhen pirates raided the ship last Friday off the coast of Puntland, a semi-autonomous region in northeast Somalia.
Yesterday, Svitzer Group officials contacted the ship and were told by the British captain that the crew is unharmed and that food and water supply was sufficient.
Mr Parle, chief engineer on the ship, is a founding member of Sligo sub aqua club and has worked for decades in the international maritime industry.