Videotel TV: IMO Bravery Award

IMO Award for Execeptional Bravery at Sea 2011

The London headquarters of the International Maritime Organization was the venue for the 2011 IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea.
The award was established five years ago to honour and pay tribute to the many men and women who have displayed exceptional acts of selfless courage when protecting and rescuing people in distress at sea.
2011 saw the highest number of nominations ever and the task of deciding the winner was a difficult challenge.

This year’s winner was Captain Seog Hae-gyun of the Republic of Korea.

In January 2011, his ship the Samho Jewelry was hijacked off the coast of Somalia. Despite being subjected to repeated physical assaults, resulting in multiple fractures to his legs and shoulders, he was able to safeguard his crew while surreptitiously slowing down the vessel and making contact with rescue forces.

In a successful operation, commandos from the Korean destroyer Choi Young, boarded the Samho Jewelry, freeing all 21 crew members.

However, in the skirmish, Captain Seog was shot twice in the abdomen and once in his thigh and very nearly died.

His citation notes that Captain Seog displayed great bravery and concern for the safety of his crew, which went far beyond the call of duty.

As outgoing IMO Secretary-General Efthimios Mitropoulos presented the medal and award certificate for Exceptional Bravery at Sea, Captain Seog received a well deserved standing ovation.

Despite the obvious effects of his injuries, he was able to give short interviews to Korean and international media.

Then, accompanied by his wife, he proudly displayed his award.

Letters of Commendation

Furthermore, letters of commendation were sent to the following nominees:

Six Australian Customs and Border Protection Service Marine Enforcement Officers serving aboard the Australian Customs and Border Protection Vessel Triton, and 12 members of the Australian Defence Force serving on the patrol boat HMAS Pirie, nominated by Australia, for rescuing 41 survivors from a small wooden vessel which had smashed against rocks off Christmas Island, in December 2010, with an estimated 70 to 100 persons on board. The rescuers spent some ten hours picking up survivors and recovering bodies.

The crew of the helicopter UH-12 “N-7051”, call sign Albatroz 51, of the Brazilian Navy 5th Squad of Helicopters for General Use, nominated by Brazil, for rescuing all three survivors from a yacht that had gone adrift off the coast of Brazil, in February 2011. The three survivors had to be hoisted from the heavy seas and required the helicopter’s diver to go into the water himself, as the height of the yacht’s mast meant that rescue directly from the yacht’s deck was impossible.

The crew of the rescue tugboat Nan Hai Jiu 197, Nan Hai Rescue Bureau, Ministry of Transport, China, nominated by China, for saving four out of five persons aboard a small cargo ship that had sunk in severe weather, in January 2011. The crew decided to launch the tugboat’s small lifeboat, despite the heavy waves, as it would be faster than the tugboat itself. They searched for and rescued four survivors, who had been adrift in lifejackets in the cold sea.

The crew of the fishing boat Zhe Ping Yu 0158, nominated by China, for the rescue of three crew members from the stricken fishing vessel Cang Long Yu 022 during super-typhoon Fanapi, in September 2010. In severe weather they deftly manoeuvred their boat alongside the damaged vessel, before transferring the crew and then towing it to safety.

Italian Coast Guard 7th Naval Squadron, Lampedusa, Sicily, nominated by Italy for working day and night, seven days a week, to save the lives of thousands of people from boats and rafts adrift or sinking in the waters surrounding the island of Lampedusa. Most of those rescued were refugees or migrants and included pregnant women and others needing medical attention.

Captain Zaw Aung and the crew of the chemical tanker MTM Princess, nominated by Myanmar, for rescuing all four persons from the yacht Octagon, which had lost its steering and was taking on water. The rescue took place in darkness, bad weather and heavy seas, in the Atlantic Ocean, 300 miles north west of Spain, in June 2010.

Captain Jeffrey J. Federigan of the cargo ship Delmas Nacala, nominated by the Philippines, for out-manoeuvring, over a period of three hours, pirates in two skiffs, 600 miles off the coast of Seychelles, in March 2010. The pirates repeatedly attempted to reach the ship, firing at it with rocket-propelled grenades, but the Master performed zig-zag manoeuvres and successfully evaded boarding.

The crew of the patrol ship Taepyeongyang No.9, from the Coast Guard of the Republic of Korea, nominated by the Republic of Korea, for rescuing all three crew members and 12 passengers from a cargo-passenger ship, in high winds, heavy seas and snow, in December 2010. The ship had already started sinking when it made the distress call but capsized within minutes of the patrol vessel arriving. Seven people were thrown into the freezing water from which they were rescued, while the other eight people were recovered from the upturned ship.

The crew of the Coast Guard MH-60J helicopter CG 6007, U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak, nominated by the United States of America, for rescuing, at night, in blowing snow and sub-zero temperatures, all five crew members from a stranded fishing vessel, in Alaska, in February 2011. The survivors were hoisted to safety one by one, as the helicopter worked in dangerous conditions, avoiding swinging masts, rigging and a nearby cliff. Bei Hai SAR Flying Service, China Rescue and Salvage Bureau, Ministry of Transport, China, nominated by the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF), for hoisting to safety, under difficult conditions, all 25 persons clinging on to a damaged drilling platform, which was tilting at a 45 degree angle, in heavy seas and high winds, in September 2010.

Mr. Zhou Guoxiong, boatswain of the rescue vessel Dong Hai Jiu 113, Donghai Rescue Bureau, Ministry of Transport, China, nominated by the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF), for his personal involvement in saving six of the 17 people who had been lost overboard when their cargo ship sank, in December 2010, in darkness and rough seas. At one point Mr. Zhou Guoxiong jumped into the cold water to help a survivor who was too weak to grab the rescue rope himself.

IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea

The IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea was established by IMO to provide international recognition to those who, at the risk of losing their own life, perform acts of exceptional bravery in attempting to save life at sea or in attempting to prevent or mitigate damage to the marine environment – and, by so doing, help to raise the profile of shipping and enhance its image.

A total of 38 nominations from 14 Member States and one non-governmental organization in consultative status with IMO were received and considered by an Assessment Panel consisting of experts nominated by various international non-governmental organizations. A Panel of Judges then met, under the chairmanship of the Chairman of the IMO Council, with the participation of the Chairmen of IMO’s Maritime Safety, Marine Environment Protection, Legal, Technical Co operation, and Facilitation Committees.