Vessels Collide off Da Nang City
The 15,100 dwt freighter Phuc Hai 05 collided during the night with the vessel Binh Minh 28 off Da Nang City, Vietnam (15-54.434N 108-36.823E). The Phuc Hai 05 was busy tring to fix an engine failure when it struck the Binh Minh 28 head on. The weather was bad and the thick fog greatly limited visibility. Most of the crew of the Binh Minh 28 were awaken by the collision. The crew rushed up on the deck to get the life raft free as the vessel was quickly flooding. When the vessel sank, it pulled the men down in the water. Six of the crew were able to grab onto a life-raft. The captain reported that the vessel sank in just 5 minutes. The Phuc Hai 05 reported that Binh Minh 28 had disappeared off the radar soon after the collision.
Maritime Search and Rescue has tried to contact the Binh Minh 28 on the radio, but there was no response from the vessel. Rescue vessels were sent out to search for the 11 crewmen aboard the Binh Minh 28. The vessel Minh Hai 136 rescued 8 men from a raft, but 2 later died before they could reach hospital. Three men are still reported as missing. The Phuc Hai 05 was heading to Da Nang from Indonesia while the Binh Minh 28 was heading to An Giang from Thanh Hoa with 1,880 tons of clinkers.
