Facts
Ole Wikborg was a mariner in the latter part of the 19th century. Born in 1854, he left home in the northern part of Norway at the age of 15 for a seagoing career that lasted until he was in his mid 30-ies. He received his master’s ticket and his first command at the age of 24. During his seagoing career, he became partner in and commanded sailing ships and occasionally experienced quite some thrilling situations.
In the 1880-ies, Arendal on the south coast was Norway’s maritime center. Shipping was confined to the summer months, and Ole Wikborg used the winters to qualify himself as an average adjuster in Hull, England. Later, he was appointed local representative for Det norske Veritas in Arendal in addition to his work as an average adjuster. In 1892 he moved to Drammen, and in late 1894 - with strong support from local ship owners - established the hull insurance mutual association Vidar. Vidar focused on insuring steamships only. With the rapid growth in importance of the steam powered vessels, Vidar became an immediate success and by 1912 was the largest hull insurance mutual in Norway, measured by tonnage and premium written.
A part of the success was to have sufficient financial backing from professional reinsurers. One of these was the Ocean, domiciled in Gothenburg, Sweden. On Ole Wikborg’s 60th birthday in 1914, Ocean instituted a foundation in Ole Wikborg's name to honor outstanding seamanship amongst officers and crew members of vessels insured by Vidar. It is the proceeds of the initial capital donated that allows Norwegian Hull Club to continue presenting these awards as Vidar is one of many hull clubs that now constitutes Norwegian Hull Club.
The mutual insurers have always put emphasis on providing their ship owning members with strong claim support. As a spin-off, lessons to be learned from the experienced gained will be passed on to the members.
As the crew has been assigned to other duties and the vessel sold since the incident, the award was received by the CEO of Globus Shipmanagement, Mr. George Karageorgiou on behalf of the crew "Coral Globe" and Global Shipmanagement company. The vessel's master, Captain Celso Salomon Ocio, will later this summer receive an award for his contribution to the successful outcome of the attack due to his strong leadership when called to extraordinary duty.
Piracy attack prevented
When the vessel was approached by the pirates, the Master informed his company, activated the Pirate Attack Security Alert Signal and reported to the IBMS Piracy Reporting Centre. The vessel was put on Security Level 3. Barbed wire had already been fitted around the periphery of the main deck and over the bulwarks as per company instructions. The vessel's engine was increased to maximum rpm, and the Master used evasive maneuvering tactics to keep the two approaching speed boats distanced from the vessel. The speed boats attacked on the port and starboard sides whilst a mother vessel was laying off behind the speed boats. Pirates on the boat on the starboard side of m/v "Coral Globe" tried to hook their ladder but the attempt was aborted due to the maneuvering tactics and the barbed wire. As the vessel was in ballast, there was a high freeboard. At 80 m distance, the boats opened fire with heavy guns. As the vessel gained speed and reached 16,5 knots, the pirate boats stopped and aborted the attack. A minor fire inside a cabin was extinguished by the crew, otherwise the crew and the vessel did not suffer significant damages.
The preparations and decisive actions taken by the Master and the crew have, without doubt, averted major physical damage to the vessel as well as stopped the pirates from taking command of the vessel. The crew came out of the event at no harm. As marine insurers will be financially liable for costs associated with physical damage and a hijacking, significant savings have been achieved by the actions taken by the Master and his crew.
The award
The presentation of the award took place in the offices of Globus Shipmanagement on Tuesday 8th June and all office staff were present at the one hour ceremony. In addition the Owner of Globus Shipmanagement and his wife took part, along with Mia Jensen of Scandianvian Shipping & Business Association of Greece, a representative from TradeWinds and a team of four from Norwegian Hull Club; Claims Manager Anders G. Hovelsrud, Senior Underwriter Arnfinn Lund, Client Services representative in Athens; Mr. Thanassis Zefkis and Director of Norwegian Hull Club Ole Wikborg, who presented the award; a diploma stating the crew's achievements and a monetary contribution to Globus' crew welfare programs of EUR 500.
Norwegian Hull Club congratulates the Master and his crew with the achievement and trust that the preparations made and the actions taken during the attack will inspire others to follow their example.
TradeWinds has posted an interview with Ole Wikborg from the event. This interview is to be found via the link on the right side of this page. (Subject to a subscription).