A UAE-flagged roll-on/roll-off carrier (roro) Al Salmy 6, which had 30 seafarers onboard sank near Iran waters
The roro belonging to the Dubai-based Salem Al Makrani Cargo Company had left the port of Dubai and was heading towards Umm Qasr port in southern Iraq. The unfortunate incident, according to a spokesperson from the company, said that high winds and waves was the cause of the sinking, which occurred about 50 km off the coast of Asaluyeh, Iran. After receiving reports, Iranian rescue vessels were sent out to attempt to reach the vessel.
Based on estimations by Iran’s weather service, the Persian Gulf were expected to experience severe weather conditions starting 16 March 2022. Meteorologists warned of powerful wind gusts of up to 70 km/h and that bad weather would affect maritime activities in the region. The Gulf region is an important trading waterway for the Gulf Arab states and capsizing of vessels in the waterway are not common.
All but one rescued
Al Salmy 6 was built in 1983 with a capacity of 16,021 gross tonnes. According to tracking data, the last recorded status of the vessel was “Not Under Command”. Maritime information service provider MarineTraffic reported that the vessel had listed at a “precarious angle” after encountering bad weather and soon became fully submerged within hours of the incident.
Of the 30 crew members onboard, 11 made it to a life raft, 16 others were rescued by rescuers while one crew was saved by a tanker nearby. Rescuers later found one of the missing two crewmembers still unaccounted for, and the remaining missing seafarer is feared to have perished. However, rescue teams are still trying to locate the seafarer till today.
The seafarers onboard were from Sudan, India, Pakistan, Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia.
Crewing Online Media Team
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