Two crew members from a dredger have been killed after a collision with a tanker capsized their ship.
Three other seafarers were reported missing following the incident on Friday involving the 17,500-gt hopper dredger Hong Hai 189 (built 2017) and a Norden pool MR vessel, the 50,400-dwt Petite Soeur (built 2011), the Philippines Coast Guard said.
A Filipino safety officer and a Chinese rating lost their lives in the accident.
Coast Guard commander Hostillo Arturo Cornelio said the collision happened at about 22:00 hours local time.
The Hong Hai 189 was about to dock “when the Petite Soeur changed berth, hitting the starboard stern of the dredger and causing a hole that caused it to capsize”.
Cornelio said the tanker was also damaged.
The Filipino officer died while being treated at Bataan General Hospital for injuries.
The body of the Chinese crew member was recovered by a search and rescue team on Saturday morning.
The team rescued two more crew members who were taken to the nearest hospital for identification and medical help.
Tanker held for probe
The Coast Guard said that prior to the incident, the Hong Hai 189 was travelling from Botolan in Zambales with 20 seafarers on board. The last port of call of the Petite Soeur was in Mariveles, Bataan.
The tanker has been detained and is undergoing a port state control inspection.
Cornelio said an initial investigation showed “safety violations” on the ship, without specifying details.
AIS showed the Marshall Islands-flag MR anchored in Limay on Monday.
Norden told TradeWinds the incident was a “tragic accident” and directed further enquiries to the shipowner or technical manager.
A salvage vessel has been contracted to tow the Hong Hai 189, operated by DFS Maritime Services of Malaysia, to prevent it sinking fully.
The tanker is managed by Synergy of Singapore.
Synergy said in a statement that managers and operators of the vessel wished to express their deepest and heartfelt sympathy, and send their condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the tragic accident, and of those who are still missing.
“At the time the Petite Soeur was merely shifting between berths at the port of Bataan, Philippines, with a pilot and a mooring master on board, when she made hard contact with the 140-metre dredger,” the company added.
The tanker was 1.6 nautical miles from the berth it had just vacated and was in the process of joining the traffic separation scheme, so it could move to a newly appointed berth at Oilink,” Synergy said.
The collision occurred despite the Petite Soeur having taken attempted evasive action, the manager added.
“A full investigation will be held, with which managers and operators will cooperate fully, and the Petite Soeur is currently at a designated anchorage while this continues,” Synergy said.
The tanker has insurance cover from the Swedish Club and a clean port state control detention record.
The vessel was sold by Norden in September for $26m.
Ownership is unclear, with the single-ship company controlling the vessel listed as Maritime Petite Soeur of the Marshall Islands.
