“We don't have time to be afraid!”

Facing danger in the midst of stormy waves, he confided: "When fishermen's lives are hanging by a thread, we have no time to be afraid!"

Rescue without stopping

On the evening of September 7, ship SAR 412 (Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center) was ordered to immediately go to Quang Ninh waters.

As soon as the order was received, the ship departed all night from Quang Ngai to be present early the next morning to rescue the Bach Dang 01 ship, which had 13 crew members in distress.

Captain of SAR 412 Tran Quang Thanh.

Captain Tran Quang Thanh said that while in the central sea, the waves were still quite calm, but when they reached Quang Ninh, the wind and waves were very fierce: "We had to struggle with waves over 4m high, mobilize all equipment, and keep a close eye out to detect where the Bach Dang 01 ship was in distress."

Upon arrival, the crew found that none of the ship’s crew members were injured and the ship was still operable. SAR 412 assisted in troubleshooting the problem. Afterwards, SAR 412 continued to escort the Bach Dang 01 ship safely back to shore.

A crew member of the Bach Dang 01 shared: "When the ship had an accident, drifting at sea in waves over 4m high, there were times when I thought 'this is the end'. At around 4:30 a.m. on September 8, when we saw the headlights and then the SAR 412 ship appeared, we were all moved to tears."

Immediately after successfully rescuing the Bach Dang 01 ship, SAR 412 continued to rescue 7 people working on the Tien Thanh 05 crane ship that was drifting and stuck in Vung Duc, Cam Pha and coordinated with the border guards to rescue 4 crew members on the inland waterway vehicle HY-0496.

SAR 412 ship towed a fishing boat in distress at sea back to shore.

Next, SAR 412 received orders to continue to Quang Ninh waters, together with SAR 411, to carry out missions in the area where the Hong Gai tugboat (belonging to Quang Ninh Port Joint Stock Company) sank on September 7.

"On the morning of September 12, divers dived to the site where the Hong Gai ship sank and found two bodies. We handed them over to local authorities and continued to search for the remaining people," said captain Tran Quang Thanh.

Those are just a few of the dozens of rescues that SAR 412 carried out before, during and after super typhoon Yagi.

Two decades of saving more than 500 people in distress

Captain Tran Quang Thanh is 57 years old this year but is still very strong, with typical features of a coastal person (he was born in Da Nang).

After many years as a cargo ship captain, traveling around the world's seas, in 2001 he joined the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center.

The SAR 412 is one of the three most modern rescue ships in Vietnam. This ship has a range of 600 nautical miles, is designed with a steel hull, an aluminum deck, and is equipped with a Furuno FM-8500 VHF radio telephone; a SRH type 50 handheld VHF radio; a modern radar system, and a medical care room...

In more than 20 years of working in maritime rescue, Mr. Thanh and his colleagues have saved about 500 people in distress at sea.

Rescued twice by SAR 412, Mr. Nguyen Van Quang, a fisherman in Quang Ngai province, shared: "At that time, I was fishing in the Hoang Sa sea area when I encountered an accident.

I and 11 crew members felt helpless, just when we were thinking about the worst situation, the SAR 412 ship arrived in time. For us, the SAR 412 ship was like a savior, giving us more motivation and confidence to stay at sea."

When asked about his most memorable memory or the most dangerous experience, he just smiled: "Maritime rescue always involves facing waves and wind, so it's always dangerous. We often tell each other that anyone doing this job must have a passion for the job to be able to stick with it."

Despite the hardship and danger, he shared that he was very happy every time he saved someone in the middle of the vast ocean. With that in mind, every time he was ordered, the crew members always tried to arrive as quickly as possible.

"Like the rescues during the recent storm number 3, information about the storm is very strong, it can even exceed the endurance of the ship.

In this case, we could have refused the mission due to safety reasons. However, because of the heart's command, the ship immediately moved at the fastest speed.

Departing from Quang Ngai, within just 10 hours, the SAR 412 ship arrived at Quang Ninh sea. Amidst the big waves and strong winds, more than 10 sailors on board, although all of them were experienced, still got seasick. At that time, I had to encourage my teammates a lot," Mr. Thanh confided.

Put aside personal feelings for duty

Mr. Thanh confided that the rescue ship is like a home for him and the crew, because they have to be on duty 24/7.

Normally, he and his crew are allowed to go ashore, but the nature of the job requires that at any time, when ordered, after 10 minutes the entire crew must be present, and after 15 minutes the ship must weigh anchor.

SAR 412 ship on a mission in the central sea.

That is why he and his colleagues do not dare to go more than 2km away from where the ship is anchored. Although his house is in Da Nang City, he rarely gets to visit, and can only talk to his wife and children over the phone.

"We understand that the fishermen's lives were hanging by a thread at that time. Therefore, every moment is precious," Mr. Thanh confided.

When asked about his fear, the captain with more than 20 years of experience laughed: "We no longer had time to be afraid. At that time, we only thought about how to save the fishermen from danger as quickly as possible."

Not only rescuing the fishermen, when bringing them to shore, because most of their relatives had not arrived yet, Mr. Thanh and the crew members on the ship used their own money to pay for the procedures to treat the fishermen.

The joy that followed was the fishermen's small thank-you gifts. It could be a chicken, a fish or just a grateful smile, but it was enough to warm his heart and that of his colleagues.

"That is the motivation for us to make more efforts, to try harder to minimize the damage to fishermen," the captain confided.

Mr. Bui Van Minh, General Director of the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Center, said that the captain and crew of the SAR ship are all experienced and dedicated to their profession.

"Among the captains of the center, Mr. Tran Quang Thanh is one of the most experienced.

With over 20 years of experience in the profession, Mr. Thanh is a person with solid expertise and especially enthusiasm. Over the past 20 years, Mr. Thanh has never refused any task.

When storm No. 3 made landfall, causing severe consequences, as soon as the order was given, the SAR 412 ship commanded by Mr. Thanh traveled from Quang Ngai to Quang Ninh to rescue victims in just about 10 hours. This can be considered a record for rescue mobility at sea," said Mr. Minh.

Storm No. 3 made landfall, not only causing heavy damage to localities but also causing a series of ships and boats at anchor to be in trouble.

The Ministry of Transport has established 3 inspection teams, coordinated with localities to direct strongly, all vehicles have entered storm shelters.

Determining that the destructive power of storm No. 3 was too great, and that many vehicles could not withstand it, leading to maritime accidents, the Ministry of Transport established a forward command center to respond to maritime incidents.

The Forward Command Center, commanded by Deputy Minister Nguyen Xuan Sang, was established at the Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center. The command center was then moved to Hai Phong for convenient monitoring and direction. Deputy Minister Nguyen Xuan Sang requested that units regularly update the situation, report on the situation suddenly and periodically every hour.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/thuyen-truong-tau-sar-412-chung-toi-khong-co-thoi-gian-de-so-192240913174119442.htm