Thirty-three of a 106-member crew of a Royal Thai Navy warship went missing in rough seas in the Gulf of Thailand early on Monday, according to Thai authorities. Authorities reported that a search operation was in progress for the missing crew and that three of the saved sailors were in severe condition. The 252-foot (76.8-meter) long corvette HTMS Sukhothai was tilted by strong winds, which allowed water to enter an exhaust pipe and shut down the ship’s electrical system, according to a Thai navy statement.
The primary power systems of the ship failed as a result of the electrical failure, making it impossible for the crew to manoeuvre the water
The primary power systems of the ship failed as a result of the electrical failure, making it impossible for the crew to manoeuvre or pump out seawater that had seeped into its hull, it claimed. The statement claimed that attempts to transfer pumps from other naval vessels responding to the situation to the Sukhothai for more than three hours failed.
The Sukhothai tiles even more around 00.12 on Monday and eventually sank, it claimed. The search for the missing crew was hampered late Sunday night into early Monday morning by the heavy weather in the Gulf of Thailand, roughly 20 miles (32 kilometres) from Bang Saphan District in Prachuap Khiri Khan province, according to police. The American-built, 960-ton Sukhothai was commissioned into the Thai navy in 1987.
The warship was outdated
An outdated ship presented challenges for the Thai crew, according to former US Navy Captain Carl Schuster. “Once the power goes out, you’re in the dark and using portable diesel pumps and buckets to accomplish everything,” he said. “The odds are against success in such instance for a small, (nearly) 40-year-old ship in rough seas.”