Tag: Search and Rescue Operations (SAR)

Coast Guard officials rescued as many as 30 crewmembers from MV RAK On Thursday morning, Coast Guard officials rescued as many as 30 crewmembers from the cargo vessel MV RAK, even as 3/4th of the 225 meter-long vessel had sunk into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea. MV Rak was carrying 60,054 meteric tonne of coal.Toral Varia, brings you a blow-by-blow account of the rescue operation. The first SOS call was made at 7.25 hours on Thursday by a crewmember of the Panama-registered bulk vessel MV RAK, relaying a call sign 3FYL7 to the Vessel Traffic Management Service."Please help us! Our boat is sinking!"Co-ordinates of the vessel at the time of the call was approximately 20 nautical miles from Mumbai near 248 Prongs Light. The ship, which started off from Lubak Tutung port, Indonesia and was on its way to Dahej in Gujarat.The call was received by the Coast Guard Ops Centre in Mumbai and immediately a search and rescue op was launched. The centre communicated the distress to the Indian Navy and simultaneously launched two HELO choppers from Coast Guard base INS Shikra at 8:15 hours and 8:30 hours respectively.They diverted the Coast Guard pollution control vessel CGS ...

The entire crew was rescued An Indian official says that navy and coast guard helicopters and ships have rescued 30 crew members from a sinking merchant ship off Mumbai's coast hours after it sent a distress signal.Indian navy spokesman Capt. Manohar Nambiar told The Associated Press that the MV Rak sent out a distress signal early Thursday morning. The navy and coast guard immediately began rescue operations.The entire crew was rescued. The sailors from Indonesia, Jordan and Romania were taken to the naval base in Mumbai.The vessel was carrying a cargo of coal and was traveling from Indonesia to the western Indian state of Gujarat.Nambiar said the ship was being monitored by the coast guard to estimate the rate at which it was sinking and to check for a possible oil spill.Source: AP

After collision with another boat off the coast of Pulau Pisang Twenty-three crewmen were rescued after their vessel sank following a collision with another boat off the coast of Pulau Pisang here.Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) southern region commander First Admiral Zulkifli Abu Bakar said the MMEA had yet to determine the cause of the collision involving the Malta-registered MV Oceania and Panama-registered MV Xin Tai Hai.The incident occurred at around 10.45pm on Friday."The MV Oceania eventually sank at around 12.30am yesterday while the other damaged vessel is currently located about 1.5 nautical miles off Tanjung Piai," he said.The crewmen of the sunken cargo boat were saved by a passing vessel."We received information that the 23 men had been brought by the vessel to Singapore but we still have not received any information from the authorities there on the condition of the men," he said.Admiral Zulkifli said the authorities were still determining the type of cargo carried by the vessel, adding, however, there was no oil spill."As a precautionary measure, our officials have been placed there to monitor the area and to ensure the safety of passing vessels," he said.Source: The Star Online

The boat had just been towed into the small island of Lampedusa The bodies of 25 migrants were discovered by Italian coastguards as they examined a boat that had just been towed into the small island of Lampedusa. The coastguards found the bodies jammed into the engine room of the overcrowded little boat.While it is believed all 25 died from asphyxiation, public prosecutors from Agrigento in Sicily have opened an inquiry into the exact circumstances of the deaths.Italian media reports claim that some of the 271 survivors offered harrowing accounts of the deaths of the migrants who were reportedly all under 25 years of age, of sub-Saharan extraction. There was one woman in the group."They were screaming to be let out of the engine room but they were just shoved back in again. They were asking for help because they had no oxygen."One of them managed to get out but some men took a hold of him and threw him into the sea where he drowned," an unnamed survivor told reporters.The boat, which set off from Libya three days ago, had been spotted late on Sunday night by Italian coastguards, who subsequently accompanied it into the harbour of Lampedusa, the ...

The cause of the problem is not clear The Philippine coast guard and fishermen rescued 168 people who were on board a passenger ship that tilted for three hours before sinking early Sunday in the central Philippines, officials said.The steel-hulled M/V Asia Malaysia was heading from the central Cebu region to Iloilo province on an overnight trip when it began to tilt to its right, or starboard side, at dawn Sunday, coast guard chief Admiral Ramon Liwag said. The cause of the problem was not immediately clear.The ship's captain sent a distress call to the coast guard and ordered all passengers and his crewmen to abandon the 2,400-ton vessel, which tilted about four miles (six kilometers) from its destination before sinking amid rain, coast guard spokesman Lt. Commander Algier Ricafrente said.Coast guard vessels, fishermen and two passenger ships saved 168 passengers and crewmen from the ship, which had a capacity of 550 people, Ricafrente said. It was unclear how many people the M/V Asia Malaysia was carrying.A coast guard helicopter was scouring the area for other possible survivors and to check whether there was an oil slick from the ship, he said.Although the weather has improved, rains were still battering ...

A dramatic 22-minute joint operation, fought on a moving ship and against a raging sea It was a dramatic 22-minute joint operation, fought on a moving ship and against a raging sea, pelting rain and howling wind, coupled with the downdraft from the helicopter rotors.With such dangerous, noisy conditions, there was no time for talk between the 15 crewmen from India who had to be winched to safety from the stricken oil tanker, the MT Phoenix, and their rescuers.The crew were very compliant. They obviously realised what was required of them, said Captain Troy Allison, commander of the SAPS search and rescue unit, who was winched down to the ship with Constable Tiaan Kotze, to help rescue eight of the crewmen.While Kotze remained on deck, Allison, wearing a body harness, was attached to the sailors with straps and hoisted back up with them, one by one, to the police air wings Squirrel B3 helicopter.A Transnet National Ports Authority Portnet helicopter from Richards Bay plucked another three men to safety with Kotzes help. An SA Air Force Oryx helicopter and crew winched four more sailors off the deck and deposited them safely on the beach.On Tuesday night, National Sea Rescue Institute ...

12 rescued and 20 missing At least 12 fishermen were rescued while 20 remain missing after their boat capsized between Masbate and Sibuyan Island in Romblon on Wednesday.The Philippine Coast Guard in Calumpang and rescue teams from Masbate managed to rescue some of the fishermen after the FB Hope Christy carrying 32 fishermen capsized at around 10: a.m.Those who were rescued were brought to the Municipal Hospital of Balud in Masbate.Meanwhile, the Coast Guard Southern Tagalog district deployed Coast Guard vessel TB-271 to help in the search-and-rescue operations for the 20 who went missing.Coast Guard commandant Admiral Ramon Liwag also ordered the Coast Guard vessel BRP Corregidor (AE-891), and the PCG helicopter help search for the missing fishermen.The Coast Guard said it will investigate what happened to the FB Hope Christy.Source: GMA News

The group went missing in bad weather while travelling in a small motor boat A search is continuing in Solomon Islands for 10 people who have been missing at sea off Makira Ulawa Province since Tuesday.Brian Aunima, head of team responsible for search and rescue, says the group went missing in bad weather while travelling in a small motor boat from Uwala to Three Sister Island.He has told Pacific Beat weather conditions are much better on Friday and they have expanded the search with the help of Australia through the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI).Mr Aunima says the search now include an Orion aircraft, a Twin Otter and helicopters from the RAMSI base in Honiara.He says they still remain confident of finding the missing people - including a 13-year-old girl - alive."The weather is improving," he said."But on Tues and Wed, the weather was very bad - the wind was up to 25 knots and there were very high swells."Source: Radio Australia News

rescue of 13 Indian crewmen from a disabled tanker in the North Arabian Gulf On the morning of the 29th June, Falmouth Coastguard received an emailed mayday from the master on board the Motor Tanker Pavit, reporting that they had suffered engine failure two days before and were taking on water through the shaft bearing.They also reported that, in the severe weather conditions, many of the crew were suffering from seasickness, with four of them considered to be seriously ill. Their stated position was 120 nautical miles from the Oman coast.Falmouth Coastguard initially sent out a broadcast to other vessels in the area, but with the severe weather on scene, none were able to go to the aid of the tanker. Falmouth Coastguard also attempted to hand over coordination to the Omani Coastguard but they were unable take on coordination of the incidentAfter liaison with the owners of the vessel, the crew on board and the Middle East Authorities, Falmouth Coastguard were able to arrange for a Royal Navy Warship HMS St Albans and an Indian products tanker (Jag Pushpa) to go to their aid, which arrived at 8.00 am yesterday morning.HMS St Albans arrived on scene yesterday morning and ...

It recommends that boat hulls be inspected for possible holes and cracks sg-eylee 11.9999 Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) issued a safety bulletin regarding overweight rescue boats.During an investigation into the failure of a fall wire of a rescue boat with the loss of one life, it was discovered that the rescue boat was significantly over its design weight.Further analysis revealed that water had entered the integral polyurethane foam-filled compartments, where it was retained.The MAIB recommends that boat hulls be inspected for possible holes, cracks, or fittings through which water may penetrate and the drain plugs are regularly opened to allow for removal of excess water.To view the Safety Bulletin, click here.Source: UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch