Thailand: Thailand’s military sent ships, helicopters, and planes to search for the missing sailors after a navy ship sank in the Gulf of Thailand during a storm. According to the Royal Thai Navy, the HTMS Sukhothai was carrying 106 people when it went down late.

The military reported that as of December 19th morning, 31 sailors remained in the water and 75 had already been rescued. At least three of the survivors had “severe injuries,” as per the report. The HTMS Sukhothai had taken on seawater after it was hit by strong waves, causing it to tilt to one side.

The corvette class ship, which had been in use since 1987, also suffered a power blackout. The vessel sank at 11:30 PM local time on December 18th.

เหตุ #เรือหลวงสุโขทัย ประสบเหตุเอียงและน้ำเข้าเรือ โฆษกกองทัพเรือชี้แจงว่าเหตุการณ์เรือหลวงสุโขทัยประสบเหตุเอียงนั้นเกิดจากเครื่องยนต์ขัดข้อง ทำให้น้ำไหลย้อนเข้าตัวเรือ และเรือเอียง กำลังเร่งระบายน้ำและอพยพกำลังพลที่ไม่เกี่ยวข้องออก ถ้ากู้สถานการณ์ไม่ได้จำเป็นต้องสละเรือ pic.twitter.com/LmQnee2G2N

— thaiarmedforce (@ThaiArmedForce) December 18, 2022

The Thai navy stated it had dispatched three frigates and two helicopters with mobile pumping machines to assist the disabled ship by removing seawater, but the rescue efforts were unsuccessful due to strong winds.

The navy shared a photo of the grey ship on its side, and another image from a scanner screen showed the ship’s bow and a gun turret sticking out of the water as it sank. The 31 sailors still missing are all believed to be afloat in the stormy sea, wearing life jackets.

The incident happened while the warship was on patrol 32 KM from the pier in the Prachuap Khiri Khan province’s Bangsaphan district. While northern and central parts are seeing their coldest temperatures of the year, far southern Thailand has been experiencing storms and flooding in recent days. Ships had been urged to remain on land during the bad weather.

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