Another deadly collision in Malacca Strait: Search on for three sailors
Collision between tanker and dredger
A search and rescue mission for three missing sailors is underway in the waters off Sisters' Island after a fatal collision between a tanker and a dredger that has already left two dead.
The accident between Indonesian-registered tanker Kartika Segara and Dominican-registered dredger JBB De Rong 19 took place at 12.40am yesterday about 1.7 nautical miles south-west of Sisters' Island, in the westbound lane in the Singapore Strait.
This was where the dredger was transiting and tanker was leaving Singapore to join the eastbound lane.
The two bodies were recovered by divers at 4pm yesterday.
The Embassy of China in Singapore said in a press release yesterday that one was a Chinese national, while the other casualty was Malaysian.
Both were from the JBB De Rong 19, which capsized from the incident and remains partially submerged.
The dredger had 12 crew members on board, consisting of 11 Chinese nationals and one Malaysian.
Seven were rescued and taken to Singapore General Hospital, and all but one have been discharged.
He suffered chest and head injuries but is now in a stable condition and has been transferred out of the intensive care unit, said the Chinese Embassy.
The 26 Indonesian crew on the Kartika Segara were unscathed. However, the ship's right front section was visibly damaged.
Search and rescue efforts, led by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), for the remaining three crew members are ongoing.
Assets aiding with recovery efforts include two Super Puma helicopters, two Chinook helicopters and one Fokker 50 plane from the Republic of Singapore Air Force; 15 vessels from MPA, the Republic of Singapore Navy, Singapore Police Coast Guard and Singapore Civil Defence Force; and seven vessels from PSA Marine and Posh Semco.
The Indonesian Rescue Coordination Centre deployed five vessels as well to assist with the effort in Indonesian territorial waters.
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