St. Vincent & the Grenadines - Security

Jul 24, 2025

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Security for Yachts

Overall Crime and Security

While most visits to SVG are trouble-free, visitors should be vigilant as in the rest of the Caribbean.

Cruisers should take basic safety precautions and use common sense when ashore. Avoid walking alone in isolated areas, especially at night. Don’t carry large amounts of cash around or wear expensive jewelry.

The risks of petty theft, pickpocketing and assault increases during regattas and festivals. Do not leave drinks unattended.

Union Island, and particularly the town of Clifton, is the slowest of the affected areas to recover and rebuild post Hurricane Beryl, which ploughed over Union in June 2024.

General Maritime Issues

Dinghy thieves operate throughout the Caribbean. Be sure to lift, chain, and lock your dinghy and outboard when not in use, especially at night. When leaving your dinghy ashore, ensure that your dinghy and outboard are securely locked.

AirTags and other cell based/Bluetooth tracking devices are being used by cruisers to track their dinghys/outboards. Some thieves are aware of this practice and may detect, locate and disable them. Understand the limitations of using tracking devices. (See this May 2024 Jost Van Dyke, BVI CSSN report.) The use of GPS trackers (rather than Bluetooth trackers) is recommended. See this Report by David Lyman.

Advice throughout the Caribbean is to remove items from the deck that may be tempting for thieves. When going ashore close all hatches, lock your boat, hide valuables out of sight and secure any loose items, including fuel/jerry cans and jugs. Keep the boat well-lit to deter boarders. It is also advisable to keep your cockpit/salon areas and hatches locked at night when sleeping onboard.

A new method of corruption appearing in Caribbean islands is for a “finders” fee to be demanded when a stolen dinghy is “found”. (See this Nov 2023 Tyrell Bay, Carriacou CSSN report and this Apr 2024 Clifton Harbour, SVG CSSN report.)

Specific Areas of Concern

The Caribbean Safety and Security Net 2023 Annual Report which details yacht crime in the Caribbean saw St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) again topping the list with 11 reported incidents, (primarily theft) spread throughout its many islands. SVG incidents dropped significantly from 26 total incidents in 2022. In 2023, Bequia (where Coast Guard patrols were instituted) and Saint Vincent each contributed 3 to the total 11. Assaults occurred in Buccament Bay, Saint Vincent (also in 2022) and for the first time in Saline Bay, Mayreau.

Current advice is to be vigilant if planning on anchoring in Cumberland Bay and Chateaubelair and to be extra vigilant with security measures in all anchorages on the West Coast of St. Vincent and around the Grenadines, in particular, Admiralty Bay, Bequia, Tobago Cays, Mayreau and Canouan where there have been more than 30 thefts in the past, including three in May 2025 alone.

Bequia has suffered in the past with theft from yachts, particularly in Port Elizabeth, however, over the last 3 years almost all were of items that weren't secured or locked up. Following a spate of burglaries in 2022, the police caught the men responsible, according to reports. In December 2022, the SVG Coastguard opened a sub-base on Bequia to help deal with the increase in crime - on land and sea.  However, their resources are limited and they only manage occasional patrols of the anchorage.

In a frightening incident in December 2023, a cruiser was attacked by a machete wielding assailant in Mayreau, but thankfully escaped unharmed.

See St. Vincent Coastguard Advice to Yacht Owners for some helpful information.

In 2024, there was a serious incident involving a cruising catamaran hijacked from Grenada by 3 escaped criminals and subsequently discovered abandoned in St. Vincent with the crew missing. Ralph Hendry and Kathy Brandel from yacht Simplicity were living the bluewater cruising life that so many of our readers aspire to. That they have gone missing, presumed dead, in such awful circumstances is truly tragic, and their families and friends are in our thoughts. The recaptured prisoners have been charged with capital murder and other serious offenses. Read the News item here.

Caribbean Safety and Security Net

The Caribbean Safety and Security Net (CSSN) collects and shares reliable reports of crimes against yachts in the Caribbean, helping cruisers make informed decisions.  

The CSSN website offers current and past incident reports, stats, regional piracy info, and annual summaries. Here are some of the ways to use their site: 

Incident Reports

Visit the CSSN St Vincent & The Grenadines page or visit the CSSN Interactive Map to keep up to date with the latest incident reports. 

CSSN's Annual Report for 2023 incidents (published in December 2024) reported that St. Vincent and the Grenadines, (SVG) although down year-to-year, remains in the top spot with 10% of all reports.

Also review Noonsite Security Reports this country for more information.

Emergency Numbers

  • VHF Channel 66 Repeater was privately donated to the Grenadian Government and is used by the Grenada Cruisers Net to provide coverage to all Grenadian waters. It can also be received in southern parts of St Vincent and the Grenadines and the northern parts of Trinidad including Chaguaramas Bay.
  • The Grenada Cruisers Net supplies weather, advice, and information on many subjects to help make Cruisers’ stay in Grenada more rewarding. It's broadcast each day at 7:30 AM.
  • Rescue 1 is a private rescue service of the Prickly Bay Marina, Grenada, and is on call 24 hours each day. As well as the rescue vessel it provides excellent liaison between cruisers, Police, Coast Guard, and other Authorities.

See General Info for more details.

Links:

Last updated: July 2025

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