Royal Malaysian Navy ship sinks due to 'collision with underwater object'

The crew of a Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) vessel were safely evacuated after the ship took on water following a collision with an underwater object off the coast of Johor state, Malaysia on August 25.

The Royal Malaysian Navy said the incident involving the KD Pendekar occurred at noon on August 25. (Source: X)

In a statement, RMN confirmed that all 39 crew members on board had been safely evacuated while the partially submerged vessel was being salvaged.

The statement said: “A leak was first detected at 12:00 (11:00 the same day Hanoi time)... The leak was caused by the naval ship KD Pendekar colliding with an underwater object.

The leak was initially detected in the ship's engine room before spreading to uncontrollable levels. The crew was safely evacuated after attempts to control the situation and stabilize the ship failed.

In a statement on the evening of August 25, RMN said the KD Pendekar sank at 3:54 p.m. the same day, two nautical miles southeast of Tanjung Penyusop, Malaysia.

The KD Pendekar was built by the Karlskrona Varvet shipyard in Sweden. The ship was launched on 11 November 1978 and commissioned into the Malaysian Navy on 27 July 1979.

The Malaysian Navy said it would immediately set up a special investigation team to determine the source of the incident. The RMN thanked the agencies that provided prompt assistance, namely the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA), the Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) and the nearby maritime community.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/tau-hai-quan-hoang-gia-malaysia-bi-chim-do-va-cham-voi-vat-the-ngam-duoi-nuoc-283881.html