On the afternoon of May 29, a report from the Office of the National Steering Committee for Civil Defense (PTDS) said that at about 3:30 pm on May 28, the dry cargo ship SG 7120 with 11 crew members practicing diving and salvage was anchored in the area about 10 nautical miles southeast of the coast of Truong Long Hoa ward (Vinh Long province) when a gas cylinder explosion incident occurred, leading to fire and sinking of the ship.
Immediately after receiving the information, the PTDS Command of the Border Guard Command (BĐBP) directed the Vinh Long Provincial BĐBP to deploy forces and vehicles to organize rescue and relief.
Functional forces have mobilized 5 officers and soldiers and 2 fishing boats to participate in the rescue, promptly rescuing 9 crew members and bringing them ashore safely. Among these, 7 injured people have been taken to Tra Vinh General Hospital for emergency treatment. Currently, 2 crew members are still missing.
To continue searching for missing victims, Vinh Long Provincial Border Guard maintains 5 officers and soldiers at the scene, mobilizing 8 fishing boats and vehicles operating in the nearby sea area to participate in the search.
On the morning of May 29, the Office of the National Steering Committee for PTDS issued a document requesting the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center, the Steering Committee for PTDS of Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho City and Dong Thap and Vinh Long provinces; the General Staff: Border Guard, Navy and Vietnam Coast Guard to coordinate in implementing measures to support search and rescue.
According to the direction, functional forces mobilized additional ships ST 04078 TS, ST 94022 TS, DT 92693 TS, TG 92178 TS and BT 98499 TS to urgently organize searches in the area 2 to 5 nautical miles from the distressed ship; and at the same time notify vehicles operating at sea to increase observation and support the detection of missing people.
On the same day, based on the proposal of the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center, the Office of the National Steering Committee for Maritime Search and Rescue directed the specialized vessel SAR 413, which is on duty in Ho Chi Minh City, to the scene to participate in the search and rescue of 2 missing crew members of ship SG 7120.
Currently, the weather in the area where the incident occurred is relatively favorable, with light winds. Functional forces are continuing to expand the search scope, urgently deploying professional measures to soon find the 2 missing crew members, and at the same time investigate and clarify the cause of the incident.
The Office of the National Steering Committee for PTDS is continuing to closely monitor the developments of the incident, maintain duty, summarize the situation and coordinate with relevant agencies and units to direct and operate search and rescue work, ensuring effective mobilization of forces and vehicles to participate in rescue.
