BHUBANESWAR/KENDRAPADA: A Panama-flagged cargo vessel carrying 72,200 metric tonnes of iron ore fines and 24 foreign crew members sank around 200 nautical miles off the Odisha coast on Saturday, triggering a large-scale search and rescue operation by the Coast Guard and Navy.The Coast Guard has so far rescued two people from life rafts.Speaking to STOI, additional director general (coastal security) Arun Bothra said, “The site of the unfortunate incident has been identified. Some crew members are floating using lifebuoys. Indian Coast Guard personnel have started moving from both the Andaman and mainland sides.”The probability of finding crew members alive has intensified the race to reach the survivors even though rough sea conditions are posing challenges to the rescue operation.Officials said a combination of satellite tracking and location data helped pinpoint the site where the vessel sank.Satellite inputs were first used to identify the area from where the last distress signal was received.The search zone was then narrowed using the ship’s GPS coordinates.
Ship was carrying 20 Chinese nat’ls, 2 from Myanmar and one B’deshi
Authorities were also able to trace some crew members through high-end life jackets equipped with AIS (Automatic Identification System) transmitters.Sources said the vessel, MV Ocean Winner, had gone incommunicado nearly 24 hours after departing Paradip port for Dalian port in China.The ship reportedly lost contact after travelling about 200 nautical miles from the Odisha coast. Following the distress alert, the Coast Guard and Navy launched rescue operations.Authorities have also alerted merchant vessels in the vicinity to assist in the search effort. An urgency signal was also issued to ships operating in the area, seeking assistance in locating survivors.According to officials, the vessel had 24 crew on board, including 20 Chinese, three Myanmar nationals and one Bangladeshi.It had loaded the iron ore fines at Paradip port before setting sail. Rescue operations were underway till late Saturday as authorities raced against time to locate and evacuate the surviving crew members, particularly those believed to be afloat in lifebuoys and life rafts.The bulk carrier, built in 1998, is 200 metres long and 32 metres wide, with a deadweight capacity of 72,928 MT.
