A ship carrying more than 3,800 tons of oil caught fire in the waters of Con Dao, 20 crew members were rescued.

On the afternoon of August 8, the Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center Region III announced that it had successfully rescued 20 crew members on the GT Unity ship (Vietnamese nationality) after the ship encountered an engine room fire while operating in the waters south of Con Dao.

According to the announcement, at noon of the same day, the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center received a distress signal from the Androusa ship (Liberian nationality) and the Cospas-Sarsat station, reporting a fire on the GT Unity ship at position 07°09'N - 107°29'E, about 104 nautical miles southeast of Con Dao, about 191 nautical miles southeast of Vung Tau cape.

The GT Unity ship was carrying 3,872 tons of FO oil, on its journey from Malaysia to Dung Quat Oil Refinery ( Quang Ngai ), when a fire in the engine room, suspected to be caused by an electrical short circuit, occurred. At this time, 16/20 crew members had left the ship by lifeboat, the weather in the area had southwest winds of level 3.

Upon receiving the information, the Center mobilized SAR 413 ship from Vung Tau to the scene, and at the same time issued an urgent maritime notice, requesting the Navy, Coast Guard, and nearby drilling rigs to coordinate rescue support.

At the Central Command Center, Director of the Vietnam Maritime and Waterways Administration Le Do Muoi directly directed the rescue work, requested the issuance of urgent maritime notices, mobilized specialized vehicles and closely coordinated with the Navy, Coast Guard and related units to organize rescue operations at sea.

The center also quickly contacted the Androusa ship (Liberian nationality) near the scene, requesting it to return to support the GT Unity ship. At exactly 13:15, the specialized rescue ship SAR 413 was dispatched from Vung Tau port to the rescue scene, and at the same time reported the incident to the Office of the National Civil Defense Steering Committee for coordination and direction.

In addition, a forward command post has been established at the Regional Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center III in Vung Tau to coordinate the rescue of the GT Unity. The center has requested the ship owner to proactively hire specialized vehicles to participate in extinguishing the fire on the GT Unity, and at the same time mobilize ships on standby at the drilling rig area near the scene to participate in the rescue.

SAR 413 was directed to approach the scene as quickly as possible to bring the injured crew members safely to shore, including one seriously injured person in critical condition who needed emergency treatment.

Notably, the Androusa ship (Liberia nationality), after being requested for assistance by the Center, returned to the scene, promptly approached and rescued all 20 crew members of the GT Unity ship. This brave and responsible action of the captain and crew of the Androusa ship was recognized and rewarded by the Vietnam Maritime and Waterways Administration.

The Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center will continue to update the next developments of the incident.

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/chay-tau-cho-hon-3800-tan-dau-tren-vung-bien-con-dao-20-thuyen-vien-duoc-cuu-song-post807496.html