Panama-Flagged cargo ship Ocean Winner sinks in Bay of Bengal

Indian authorities have launched a joint search and rescue operation following the sinking of the Panama-flagged cargo vessel, the MV Ocean Winner, in the Bay of Bengal on Saturday. The vessel, loaded with iron ore, was en route from Odisha, India, to Singapore when it went down approximately 240 nautical miles off the Paradip coast. According to the Indian Coast Guard, communication with the Ocean Winner was lost shortly before the ship foundered. The vessel had just departed the Odisha coast on Friday before sinking during the weekend voyage. There were 24 crew members aboard the ship at the time of the incident, whom authorities noted were predominantly Chinese nationals.
The Panama-flagged vessel, which left Paradip at about 10:30 p.m. on August 20, laden with 1700 tonnes of iron ore , was last reported to have been sailing about 200 nautical miles from the port when communication was lost, sources in Paradip Port Authority said. The vessel was carrying 24 crew members, including 20 Chinese nationals, 1 Bangladeshi, and 3 Myanmar nationals, according to preliminary information. The exact status of the ship and its crew could not be independently confirmed immediately.
The Indian Coast Guard and the Indian Navy immediately initiated a coordinated rescue mission upon losing contact. Nearby merchant and commercial vessels in the Bay of Bengal have also been alerted and diverted to assist in locating the crew.Meanwhile,the Coast Guard has so far rescued two survivors, while the search for the remaining crew members is underway. Coast Guard ships Varad and Anmol were sent to take part in the search and rescue effort, while a third vessel, Vijit, was also deployed from Sri Vijaya Puram to support the operation.