Two recovered dead and three missing after collision off Singapore
The tanker "Kartika Segara" was in collision with the brand new "JBB De Rong 19" on Sep 13, 2017, at 12.40 a.m. in the Singapore Straits five kilometers from the island of Sentosa. Both ships were proceeding in opposite directions with the dredger transiting westbound, coming from Tanjjung Pelabas and being inbound, and the tanker sailing eastbound, coming from Singapore and bound for Bau Bau. The dredger capsized and partially sank, the tanker suffered damage to the starboard bow, but remained seaworthy and was moored at the Eastern Anchorage off Singapore. The tanker’s crew of 26 was unharmed. From the dredger’s crew of 12, among them, 11 Chinese and one Malaysian, seven were rescued by a police boat of the Singapore Police, five more were missing. 30 boats from Singapore and neighbouring Indonesia, and five Singapore Air Force aircraft, the MPA, the Coast Guard and the Singapore Civil Defence Force launched an SAR operation. In addition, a Republic of Singapore Air Force Super Puma helicopter began an aerial search at 7 a.m. Two MPA tugs have moved the partially submerged dredger to an area near Pulau Senang for follow up underwater search operations. The MPA has issued a navigational broadcasts for ships to look out for the missing crew and to navigate with caution when in the vicinity of the incident site. Two bodies were recovered by divers on Sep 13 at 4 p.m.
