Danial Norjidi & Hakim Hayat

A SHIP sank just off Pelong Rocks in Muara Saturday night due to bad weather conditions but all 11 crewmembers of foreign nationalities onboard were rescued and reported safe, as confirmed by the Ministry of Communications through the Marine Department last night.

The Kuching, Sarawak registered ship ‘Dolphin88’ was carrying 3,500 tonnes of stones and sailing through Brunei waters from Kuching to Lawas when it split into two and sank at about 8.25pm just off Pelong Rocks, 3.5 nautical miles off Meragang Beach, the Acting Director of Marine Department, Captain Basza Alexzandar Basri told the Borneo Bulletin last night.

All crew onboard were rescued by a vessel close to the area, MV Jaya Amethyst, and were attended to immediately upon landing by a medical team from Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha (RIPAS) Hospital, a press statement said.

When asked to share more details on the rescue mission, the Acting Director said, “The Muara Signal Station received a mayday call from Dolphin88, which prompted the signal station personnel to relay the mayday signal to the nearest vessel. It was acknowledged by a rescue vessel, which rushed to the location and found crewmembers already on a life raft.”

Captain Basza said the ship’s crewmembers are from Malaysia, India and Indonesia, adding that they were being taken care of at the Marine Police Headquarters in Muara and by their employers.

Meanwhile, no oil spill has been detected following the incident. Captain Basza said they are still closely monitoring the location in case of an oil spill and said as of sunset yesterday, no oil spill was detected.

The press statement said the incident is currently under investigation by the Marine Department, Brunei Darussalam (MDBD) and may be attributed to bad weather conditions. “According to the Meteorological Department, Ministry of Communications, the weather conditions during the incident were reported as heavy intensity thundershowers which occurred mostly over Brunei Bay.”

To enable the Marine Department to carry out its investigation effectively and efficiently, the public is advised to stay well clear of the area, and to navigate with extreme caution should travel be extremely necessary.

Captain Basza stressed that safety is the Marine Department’s main concern, and when asked what is being done, said, “We have lit up the vessel with a marker so that the public making use of the area will be alert.”

The plight of the vessel now remains unknown but Captain Basza said the owner of the vessel is still trying to find a source or a way to salvage the vessel.

“The owner has been very cooperative so it depends on how soon a source of salvage can be attained because you need some speciality vessels for this kind of salvage work,” he said.