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Tag: Gulf of Thailand

  • Thailand navy: Search party deployed in search for 31 missing sailors after warship sinks

    When HTMS Sukhothai was patrolling the Gulf of Thailand late on Sunday, it capsized in strong waves.

    Thirty-one sailors are missing after their warship capsized in rough seas in the Gulf of Thailand, and Thai navy ships and helicopters are searching for them.

    While on patrol late Sunday night, 37 kilometres (22 miles) off the country’s southeast coast, the HTMS Sukhothai capsized.

    The navy reported that as of Monday afternoon, 31 of the 75 crew members of the corvette were still missing. The navy reported that although the high waves that caused the accident had diminished since the sinking, they were still high enough to put small boats in danger.

    A statement from the air force on Monday said it was assisting in the operation. It did not give details.

    Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said the cause of the incident was being investigated. “I am following the news closely,” he said in a statement. “About five people are seriously injured.”

    A rescued crew member interviewed by Thai PBS television said he floated in the sea for three hours before he was rescued. He said the ship was buffeted by waves 3 metres (10 feet) high as it was sinking.

    “The waves are still high and we cannot search for them from the horizontal line,” navy spokesman Pokkrong Monthatphalin told Thai PBS. “We have to fly the helicopters and search for them from a bird’s eye view instead.”

    Army personnel and rescue crew gather at a makeshift rescue operation site during the search for survivors of the capsizing of the Thai naval vessel HTMS Sukhothai about 37 kilometres (22 miles) off the southeastern coast on Sunday night, at Bang Saphan Pier in Prachuap Khiri Khan district, on December 19, 2022. - Thai military frigates and helicopters were on December 19 searching for 31 sailors after a naval vessel sank, with dozens of others having been hauled from choppy waters. (Photo by Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)
    Military personnel and rescue crews have been deployed to search for survivors of the capsizing of the HTMS Sukhothai [Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP]

    Eleven of the rescued sailors were being treated in hospital. The navy denied a local media report that one death had been confirmed, saying the fatality was from an accident involving another boat.

    Thailand’s Meteorological Department had issued a weather advisory for the general area just a few hours before the accident, saying thundershowers were expected in the Gulf of Thailand along with waves 2 to 4 metres (7 to 14 feet) high. It suggested that all ships “proceed with caution” and warned small craft not to go to sea until Tuesday.

    The Sukhothai was built in Tacoma, Washington, in the United States and was commissioned in 1987. It is a midsized corvette, an armed vessel typically used for patrolling close to shore waters. It has a maximum displacement of 959 tonnes and a length of 76.8 metres (252 feet).

    The warship had been on patrol 32km (20 miles) from the pier in Bangsaphan district in Prachuap Khiri Khan province. Pokkrong said the ship had been on a regular patrol to assist any fishing boats needing help.

    “Our top priority now is to rescue all the sailors,” he said. “We will plan to have the ship salvaged later.”

    Northern and central Thailand are seeing their coldest temperatures of the year, and far southern Thailand has been experiencing storms and flooding in recent days.

    Source: Aljazeera.com 

     

     

     

     

  • Thailand warship capsizes leaving 31 sailors missing

    A warship carrying more than 100 crew members collapsed and sank in the Gulf of Thailand during a storm, according to the Thai navy, leaving 31 servicemen unaccounted for.

    The HTMS Sukhothai sank after water flooded its power controls on Sunday night. Images shared by the navy showed some crew who survived in a life raft.

    On Monday, authorities said they had rescued 75 sailors, but 31 were still missing in rough seas.

    “We will keep looking,” a navy spokesman told the BBC.

    Search crews worked through the night to find survivors, with the operation continuing on Monday with air force assistance.

    The navy also announced an investigation into the cause of the disaster.

    “This has almost never happened in our force’s history, especially to a ship that is still in active use,” spokesman Admiral Pogkrong Monthardpalin told the BBC.

    Footage shared by the navy on Twitter showed crew members wrapped in blankets and receiving treatment after they had been rescued. Some were being airlifted to hospital.

    Other images showed sailors from the Sukhothai in a life raft, having jumped from the sinking vessel.

    One unnamed crew member said he had been in the water for several hours before he was rescued.

    “The waves were quite high, about three metres when the ship sank,” he said in a clip shared on local media. “I put on the life jacket and jumped. I swam for three hours.”

    Officials said the ship went down after it took on water, which flooded its hull and short-circuited its power room.

    With the power lost, the crew battled to retain control of the ship which listed on to its side before sinking around 23:30 local time Sunday (16:30 GMT).

    The ship had been on a patrol 32km (20 miles) east of Bang Saphan, in the Prachuap Khiri Khan province, when it got caught in the storm on Sunday.

     

    Source: BBC

  • Thai navy ship sinks, leaving scores of sailors missing

    When it sank in choppy waters in the Gulf of Thailand, the HTMS Sukhothai was carrying 106 passengers, according to the navy.

    After a navy ship sank in the Gulf of Thailand during a storm, Thailand’s military sent ships, helicopters, and planes to try and find the dozens of sailors who are still missing.

    The Royal Thai Navy reported that 106 people were aboard the HTMS Sukhothai when it went down late on Sunday night.

    31 sailors were still in the water as of Monday morning’s midday, according to the military, who reported that 75 sailors had been saved. The Bangkok Post newspaper claimed that at least three of the survivors had “seriously injured.”

    The HTMS Sukhothai had taken on seawater after it was hit by strong waves, causing it to tilt to one side, according to the Bangkok Post. The corvette class ship, which had been in use since 1987, also suffered a power blackout.

    The vessel sank at 11:30pm local time (16:30 GMT) on Sunday.

    The Thai navy said it had dispatched three frigates and two helicopters with mobile pumping machines to assist the disabled ship by removing seawater, but the rescue efforts were unsuccessful due to strong winds.

    A picture shared by the navy showed the grey vessel flipped over onto its side, while another image on a scanner screen showed the bow of the ship and a gun turret poking out above the waterline as it went down.

    The 31 sailors still missing are all believed to be afloat in the stormy sea, wearing life jackets, the Bangkok Post reported.

    The incident occurred while the warship was on patrol at sea 32km (20 miles) from the pier at Bangsaphan district in Prachuap Khiri Khan province.

    While northern and central parts are seeing their coldest temperatures of the year, far southern Thailand has been experiencing storms and flooding in recent days.

    Ships had been warned to stay ashore during the inclement weather.

    Source: Aljazeera.com