The navy yesterday dispatched three vessels to help bring a warship home, after it was damaged in Palau when carrying out a naval friendship tour.
"A Cheng Kung-class frigate was damaged when it was attempting to berth in a harbor in Palau Monday morning. The bottom of the ship hit something; the ship was shaking and then lost power as Palauan pilots guided it into the harbor," said Rear Admiral Wu Gi-fung (吳季方) from Navy Fleet Command at a press conference yesterday.
Wu said the navy yesterday decided to send a Lafayette-class frigate and two tugboats to escort the warship back to Kaohsiung.
PHOTO: FANG PIN-CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
No one was hurt in the accident, Wu said.
Another Cheng Kung-class frigate was also ordered to go to sea yesterday to replace the damaged warship and continue the mission, Wu said.
He said the damaged ship was currently around 93km from Palau, escorted by Palauan vessels.
The admiral said the damaged warship, accompanied by a supply ship, left for Palau on March 16. The warship had planned to stay in Palau for two days, and then sail to other diplomatic allies in Oceania, Wu said.
The warship may have hit a coral reef, as these are abundant in Palau, he said.
He said the navy has not decided whether to ask Palau to compensate the navy for the damage caused by the incident, as it occurred in a Palauan harbor while the ship was under the control of Palauan pilots.
Wu added that the incident would not affect the navy's combat capabilities.
This is not the first time a Taiwanese naval vessel has been involved in a mishap in a Paluan.
A Lafayette-class frigate hit a seawall and sustained damaged as it entered a Palauan harbor in 2002.
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