18 Vietnamese crew rescued off sinking freighter in S'pore-coordinated effort: MPA

All 18 crew members on board a sinking freighter ship off Vietnam were rescued on Jan. 11, confirmed the Maritime and Port Authorities (MPA) in a statement.

The Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), operated by MPA, was alerted to a distressed Vietnamese-registered freighter Dolphin 18 via a Hong Kong-registered container vessel — Nicolai Maersk — at approximately 7am local time.

The rescue

As Dolphin 18 was reported to be about 274 nautical miles southwest of Vung Tau, Vietnam, it was within the Singapore Maritime Search and Rescue Region, said MPA.

As such, the MRCC helped to coordinate the search and rescue, and issued navigational broadcasts for vessels in the vicinity to keep a lookout for other sightings of the distressed vessel, said the statement.

MPA has also alerted its Vietnamese counterparts, it added.

Maersk was able to reach Dolphin 18 in time, and successfully rescued all 18 Vietnamese crew members.

All 18 were found to be in healthy condition.

Since then, the Dolphin 18, which was built in 1999, has reportedly sunk, said MPA.

MRCC has issued navigational advisories to alert other vessels in the area to navigate with caution.

Top image from Thoan Thang Shipping