Two survivors have been rescued from a Panama-flagged cargo vessel that sank in the Bay of Bengal with 24 people on board, while search-and-rescue operations remain underway for the other crew members, shipping and waterways minister Sarbananda Sonowal said on Sunday.The vessel, MV Ocean Winner, was carrying 72,100 metric tonnes of iron ore from Odisha’s Paradip Port and sank about 230-240 nautical miles from the coast, according to officials and reports cited by PTI earlier. The vessel had a length overall of 225 metres and a width of 32.26 metres.“Deeply concerned by the unfortunate incident involving MV OCEAN WINNER off the coast of Odisha. The Panama-flagged vessel was carrying iron ore from Paradip Port to China,” Sonowal said in a post on X.“All agencies are coordinating closely and search and rescue efforts are underway,” he said.Sonowal added, “2 survivors have been successfully rescued and are being given medical care; their rank and identity are currently being verified.”
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The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) intensified its search after losing communication with the vessel on Saturday. The ship had 24 crew members, 20 Chinese nationals, three Myanmar nationals and one Bangladeshi national.The Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) diverted MT Aisopos, a commercial vessel in the vicinity, to assist in the search. The vessel recovered two survivors from two life rafts at about 8 pm, officials said.The ICG had also deployed two vessels from Sri Vijaya Puram, formerly known as Port Blair, for the search-and-rescue operation, Coast Guard spokesperson Commandant Amit Uniyal said.The vessel had left the Paradip coast at 10.42 pm on August 20, carrying iron ore fines, according to officials. An initial report by India’s maritime authorities said it was bound for China, while other government information indicated Singapore as its destination.The cause of the sinking was not immediately known.Search operations are continuing to locate the remaining crew members, with maritime agencies coordinating efforts in the area.
