Indian Coast Guard, Pakistan Agency join forces to rescue 12 crew members from sunken ship

Indian Coast Guard rescues 12 crew members from sunken vessel in Arabian Sea with Pakistan Maritime Security Agency collaboration.

The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has rescued 12 crew members of a merchant vessel from the country that sank in the North Arabian Sea during its voyage from Porbandar in Gujarat to Bandar Abbas port in Iran, officials said on Thursday (December 5, 2024). The vessel, ‘(Maritime Security Agency) MSV Al Piranpir,’ sank on Wednesday (December 4, 2024) outside Indian waters, within Pakistan’s search and rescue region. The Indian Coast Guard carried out the rescue operation in collaboration with the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA), the ICG said in a press release.

"This humanitarian search and rescue mission saw a close collaboration between the Indian Coast Guard and PMSA, with both nations' Maritime Rescue Coordination Centres [MRCC] maintaining continuous communication throughout the operation," the ICG said in a release. The merchant vessel left with general cargo for the Iranian port from Porbandar on December 2. On its way, it reportedly sank in the morning hours of Wednesday (Dec. 4) due to rough seas and flooding, said the press release.

The Indian Coast Guard's MRCC, Mumbai, received a distress call which promptly alerted the ICG Regional Headquarters (North West) in Gandhinagar. ICG ship Sarthak was immediately diverted to the reported location. The MRCC Pakistan was also contacted to alert mariners in the area, and their assistance was swiftly provided, the press release said.

Later, the ship Sarthak reached the probable location and conducted an extensive search. The 12 crew members, who had abandoned their vessel and taken refuge in a small dinghy, were located, and rescued approximately 270 km west of Dwarka, within Pakistan's search and rescue region, it said. A PMSA aircraft and the merchant ship MV Cosco Glory supported the search for survivors. The rescued crew members were examined by a medical team onboard ship Sarthak and were reported to be in good health. They were being transported back to Porbandar harbour, the press release added.

According to a PMSA statement, at approximately 10:20 hours on Wednesday (Dec. 5), the MRCC Pakistan received an urgent email from MRCC Mumbai requesting assistance to locate and rescue survivors from the sunken vessel. The vessel was reported to have sunk in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Pakistan, with its 12 crew members stranded on a liferaft in distress, it said. A PMSA aircraft was immediately tasked to locate the survivors, while nearby commercial vessels were alerted and requested to assist in the rescue, the statement said.

The Joint Maritime Information Coordination Centre (JMICC) facilitated seamless collaboration, placing both Pakistan Navy (PN) and PMSA ships on high alert, with the nearest PN ship promptly dispatched to the scene, the statement said. “The swift response and effective coordination resulted in the successful rescue of all 12 survivors of the Indian cargo vessel, demonstrating PMSA's commitment to upholding International SAR obligations and fostering regional cooperation,” it added.