Coast Guard saves sinking tanker with 23 crew off Odisha coast

Indian Coast Guard

NEW DELHI: In an operation to avert a major disaster at sea, Indian Coast Guard Sunday rescued a foreign-flagged tanker carrying 23 crew members and 9,000 tonnes of palm oil after its main engine failed, ballast tanks began flooding and the vessel was dangerously tilted off Odisha coast, reports Surendra Singh.The Belize-flagged MT Seagull 9 sent out a distress call around 7.30am Sunday, when it was 37 nautical miles east-southeast of Paradip. In a post on X Monday, Indian Coast Guard (ICG) said, "... Following a critical distress call from MT Seagull 9 off Paradip, ICGS Vishwast launched a swift & decisive operation to rescue the unstable chemical tanker carrying 9,000 MT palm oil & 23 crew members." ICG said concurrent cargo transfer and de-flooding operations helped prevent the tanker from capsizing.