Ten sailors are missing after a US warship collided with an oil tanker east of Singapore before dawn yesterday, tearing a hole beneath the waterline and flooding compartments that include a crew sleeping area, the US Navy said.
The collision between the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain and the tanker Alnic MC was the second involving a US Navy destroyer and a merchant vessels in Asian waters in little more than two months.
The ships collided while the US warship was heading to Singapore for a routine port call, the US Navy said in a statement.
Photo: AP / Grady T. Fontana / US Navy
“Initial reports indicate John S. McCain sustained damage to her port side aft,” the US Navy said. “There are currently 10 sailors missing and five injured.”
The destroyer had made its way to Singapore’s Changi Naval Base by yesterday afternoon.
Significant damage to the hull had resulted in flooding to compartments, including crew berthing, machinery, and communications rooms, the US Navy said, but crew members were able to stop the flooding.
Photo: Reuters
Four of the injured were taken by helicopter to hospital in Singapore with non-life threatening injuries. The fifth needed no further treatment.
The USS John S. McCain’s sister ship, the USS Fitzgerald, almost sank off the coast of Japan after it was struck by a Philippine container ship on June 17. The bodies of seven Fitzgerald sailors were found in a flooded berthing area.
A search-and-rescue mission was under way for the sailors missing from the USS John S. McCain involving Singaporean ships, helicopters and tugs, as well as US Navy aircraft.
A crew member on the Alnic MC said by telephone there was no oil spill from the Liberian-flagged, 183m long tanker, which was carrying almost 12,000 tonnes of fuel oil from Taiwan to Singapore.
“We have not discharged the tanker yet,” said the crew member, who asked not to be identified. “We are proceeding to Raffles Reserved Anchorage, where the owners will investigate the matter. There was some damage to the valve, but no oil spill.”
Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) said no injuries were reported on the Alnic, which suffered some damage above the waterline.
“There is no report of oil pollution and traffic in the Singapore Strait is unaffected,” the MPA said, adding that the collision happened in Singaporean territorial waters.
However, Malaysian navy chief Ahmad Kamarulzaman Ahmad Badaruddin said the collision happened in Malaysian waters and that Malaysia had sent vessels to assist.
He said the KD Handalan was the first to respond to the distress call from the US ship.
“KD Handalan was just 2 miles from the USS McCain when it first received the distress call,” he said.
The Pedra Branca area near where the collision happened has long been contested by both nations.
Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency Director General Zulkifili Abu Bakar told reporters that his government disputed Singapore’s assertion that the accident happened in its waters.
He said the Malaysian search and rescue operation was independent of Singapore’s and Malaysia had not communicated with its neighbor about the incident.
Ben Stewart, commercial manager of Maritime Asset Security and Training in Singapore, said early indications suggested the warship may have turned across the front of the tanker.
USS John S. McCain is named for the father and grandfather of US Senator John McCain, who were both admirals.
The Philippine Coast Guard yesterday said it has deployed its largest vessel and an aircraft to challenge a Chinese research ship operating off northern Batanes near Taiwan, adding that a Chinese coast guard vessel had also moved in. The Philippine operation “disrupted the vessel’s unauthorized marine scientific research and compelled it to leave its loitering position,” said Jay Tarriela, Philippine Coast Guard spokesperson on South China Sea issues. The Philippine Coast Guard said the BRP Teresa Magbanua and an aircraft were deployed to counter the Chinese vessel, which it said had remained about 37 nautical miles northwest of Itbayat Island since Monday. The
RUNWAY: Analysts said the first aircraft landing is expected by the middle of next year, while Chinese state media said it would serve civilian needs Chinese construction of a runway on Antelope Reef (Lingyang Reef, 羚羊礁) in the Paracel Islands (Xisha Islands, 西沙群島), is well under way with analysts estimating it could be completed by the middle of next year, strengthening Beijing’s military control over the disputed South China Sea. Satellite images reviewed by Reuters show grading work, piles of gravel and concrete, and compaction cranes in operation to build a full-scale runway that military attaches and security analysts say could be one of China’s most important offshore bases in the region. The images, taken on Friday last week by commercial satellite imagery provider Vantor, also show
DEFENSE: The US House speaker dismissed speculation that Trump is using arms sales as a negotiating tactic with Beijing amid concern over delayed deliveries Taiwan is a partner whose “stability and independence” are important to US national security and the economy, US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson said on Monday when asked about arms sales to Taipei in an interview with Fox Business. Asked whether US President Donald Trump was using a long-delayed US$14 billion arms deal as a negotiating tactic for trade with Beijing, Johnson said that he “wouldn’t read too much into that.” The delayed arms package is “related to the Iran conflict” and the need for missile stocks in the Middle East, he said. “If you look over [Trump’s] two terms, he will
Taiwanese tennis players Hsieh Su-wei (謝淑薇) and Liang En-shuo (梁恩碩) yesterday won the women’s doubles gold at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, securing the nation’s fifth gold medal of the Games. The pair defeated compatriots Chan Hao-ching (詹皓晴) and Wu Fang-hsien (吳芳嫺) 6-4, 4-6, 10-5 at Higashiyama Park Tennis Center, giving Taiwan a gold-silver sweep in the event. After splitting the opening two sets, the Taiwanese foursome contested a deciding match tiebreak, with Hsieh and Liang emerging victorious after one hour and 59 minutes. Hsieh and Liang won 87 points to their opponents’ 73 and took 59 percent of points played on their first
RSS