Empty Lifeboat, Distress Beacon Found As Indian Coast Guard Searches For 22 Missing Crew In Bay Of Bengal

Search teams from India have found an empty lifeboat and an emergency beacon related to the Panama-flagged bulk carrier MV Ocean Winner. Its 22 crew members have not yet been accounted for since the vessel sank in the Bay of Bengal.

The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) and Navy are searching 290 nautical miles off the Paradip coast. Merchant ships and two Chinese vessels have also joined the effort.

ICG ship Varad found the lifeboat at around 7 a.m. on Tuesday. A boarding team checked the boat but found no survivors.

During an aerial search, a naval aircraft detected a distress transmission and guided Varad to the location, the Coast Guard said.

The ship later recovered an emergency position-indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) from the area, which was confirmed to be linked to MV Ocean Winner.

However, this discovery proves only the fact that distress equipment of the vessel was working. It is not clear yet what happened to the crew after the ship sank.

The 28-year-old MV Ocean Winner was carrying around 71,000 tonnes of iron ore from Paradip Port to China when it sank on August 22. The cause of the sinking has not yet been determined.

There were 24 crew members on board. Two Chinese nationals were rescued after being found adrift in liferafts, while the remaining 22 are still missing.

Twenty of the crew members are Chinese, three are from Myanmar, and one is from Bangladesh.

The Coast Guard said it had stepped up the search in coordination with the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) in Beijing.

Additional Coast Guard assets and merchant vessels have been deployed, while Navy aircraft and ships are also taking part.

The search area has been expanded because currents and waves may have carried the missing crew away from the area where the vessel sank.

The two rescued sailors are receiving medical care on board a Coast Guard rescue ship and are expected to be brought to Paradip, which is about 230 nautical miles from the coast.

Ocean Winner Shipping Corporation Ltd has been recognised as the owner of the ship.

However, an initial request for search and rescue assistance to the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre was made by Victory Star Group Corporation Ltd after contact with MV Ocean Winner was lost.

After the incident, Paradip Port has also tightened some safety measures, according to a dock supervisor. Vessel hatches are now being kept closed during rainfall, and cargo loading is being stopped when it rains to prevent moisture from entering the holds.

The additional precautions have slowed cargo-loading operations at the port.

References: timesnownews, newindianexpress