Oman: Indian crew member killed in attack on oil tanker
What's the story
An Indian crew member was killed when an unmanned drone boat struck the oil tanker MKD VYOM off Oman's coast. The incident occurred on Saturday, around 52 nautical miles northwest of Port Sultan Qaboos in Muscat Governorate. The tanker, flying the flag of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, was carrying around 59,463 metric tons of cargo at the time.
Incident details
Fire and explosion in main engine room
According to officials, the unmanned drone boat collided with the tanker, resulting in a fire and an explosion in its main engine room. The incident left one crew member, an Indian national, dead. There were 21 crew members on board the vessel, including 16 Indians, four Bangladeshis and one Ukrainian.
Rescue operations
All survivors rescued by merchant ship
All survivors from the MKD VYOM were rescued by the merchant ship MV SAND, which is registered under Panama. The rescue operation was coordinated with Oman's Maritime Security Centre. The Royal Navy of Oman has since deployed a vessel to monitor the damaged tanker and issue navigational warnings to passing ships.
Rising tensions
Attack comes amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran
The attack comes amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran. Iran has issued warnings to vessels heading toward the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic chokepoint for oil shipments. The country is suspected of carrying out several maritime attacks as hostilities in the region intensified after major US and Israeli airstrikes on its territory killed its supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and others.
Repeat incident
Second attack on cargo vessels in Strait of Hormuz
This is the second attack on cargo vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Earlier, a Palau-flagged oil tanker Skylight was attacked near Oman's Musandam peninsula, injuring four crew members. Oman's Maritime Security Centre said that the strike occurred around five nautical miles north of Musandam's Khasab Port, after which the tanker's 20-member crew was evacuated.