Narinjara News


Tremor sinks a Chinese vessel off Arakan Coast

Chittagong, 14^th August 03:  A Chinese cargo vessel sank in the Andaman seas off the western Burmese coast of Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine State in the early morning hours of Tuesday when the sea became rough due to a tremor.  Twenty-eight of the sailors were rescued by the Bangladesh Navy in the Bay of Bengal and brought to Chittagong port yesterday.

According to the spokespersons of the Chittagong port and Naval sector China-bound the MV U Xia lost balance and sank off Sittwe coast while there was an earthquake in the high seas on Monday midnight. 

The ship was carrying around 14,300 tons of ‘iron and steel’ goods.  The source said a Chittagong port-bound cement clinker-carrying vessel MV Chieftain  II rushed to the rescue of the 28-member crew including the captain after it had received SOS message.  The vessel reached the outer anchorage of the port Wednesday evening. 

The local agent of the sunken vessel Northwest Shipping Lines said that the officials of the Chinese Embassy came to Chittagong on Wednesday night to receive the rescued sailors.

On asking whether the people of Sittwe knew about the sunken ship, a source in the Burmese Navy in Sittwe said that they have heard about the disaster and also received the SOS, but because of the lack of preparedness the Navy could not do anything to rescue the vessel and its crew.  #