On the afternoon of July 5, an 40-seat passenger excursion vessel capsized at Dongjiang Lake near the city of Zixing, China. Reports state a strong sudden gust of wind reaching 30 meters per second struck the passenger ship causing the vessel to capsize and sending 29 people into the water. Twenty-seven would be later rescued, but 2 people would perish during the incident. A search and rescue would recover the bodies by the following day.
Photo: xinhua
Photo: xinhua
Photo: nfnews.com
Authorities have launched an investigation into the incident. Initial reports state the vessel was not overloaded and there were no prior issues with the vessel. The name of the vessel was not disclosed.
On the night of July 2, the 63 meter long, 955 dwt ro-ro passenger ferry Tunu Pratama Jaya (IMO: 8749432) sank in the Bali Strait off Ketapang Port, Indonesia. The ferry was making a regular crossing between Ketapang Port, Banyuwangi to Gilimanuk Port, Bali when it suffered water ingress in the engine room. The flooding could not be contained and the Tunu Pratama Jaya suffered a total power blackout a few minutes later. Adrift and being pulled by the strong currents, the ferry rolled in rough seas. The Tunu Pratama Jaya continued to roll until it finally lost stability allowing water to rush over its decks causing the ferry to capsize and sink in the middle of the strait.
The Tunu Pratama Jaya was able to send out a distress call with another ferry the KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya 3888 responding. Unfortunately, the KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya 3888 was unable to evacuate passengers or crew before the ferry sank. The Indonesian Navy, local water police and several volunteers began a search and operation looking for survivors in the water. Authorities report that 35 survivors were pulled from the water along with 6 bodies recovered.
The Tunu Pratama Jaya had listed to have 53 passengers and 12 crew on board, but this number may not match to the total who were on board during the incident. Reports state that rough seas with waves of 2 meters have hampered search efforts.
Photo: seblang.com
Photo: seblang.com
Photo: okezone.com
Photo: Bali Search and Rescue
Witness accounts stated the vessel was rolling badly before it finally capsized. These accounts stated that the vessel did not attempt to distribute life jackets before it sank. One account stated the passengers swam free of the ferry and found several life jackets in the water before being rescued by a local fisherman. The exact cause of the water ingress is still under investigation by authorities. Reports states that authorities halted the search and rescue operations later on July 3.
On July 1, the 33 meter long jack-up rig barge Admarine 12 (IMO: 8755778) capsized in the Gulf of Suez some 130 nautical miles south of the Suez Canal. The Admarine 12 was being towed by three offshore tugs to a new drilling site in the Gabal El-Zeit area when barge the barge to lost stability. With no way to correct the weight imbalance, the barge quickly rolled over in minutes sending all the people on board into the water.
A distress call was sent out by the tugs with rescue services arriving from Gabal El-Zeit. The rescuers were able to locate 23 survivors from the sea. Many had suffered various injuries from the incident that required medical treatment. Four bodies were also recovered by their effort. However, three additional people were still listed as missing. The Egyptian Navy would later join the search and rescue efforts looking for the missing.
Photo: x.com
There is some speculation to the cause of the leg failures and capsizing. Local news reports there was a technical malfunction that caused the imbalanced. Others have pointed to the age of the Admarine 12stating the barge may have suffered structural failure due to its prolonged use. The Admarine 12 had been built in 1966 and lacked the structural analysis and engineering that modern jack-up platforms undergo today. Authorities and the barge owner Osoco have stated if the Admarine 12 will be salvaged or be scrapped. The incident is under investigation by Egyptian authorities.
