Crew of sunken Maldivian cargo ship to arrive in Maldives tonight

The Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) has said that the crew of the Maldivian cargo ship that sank in Indian waters with 22 people on-board, will arrive in the Maldives tonight.

Indian papers have reported that the MV Asian Express left a port in Karachi, Pakistan on 31 May with cement and sand bound for Male’, when it developed a crack on the starboard below the waterline and started flooding.

MNDF Media Official Abdullah Ali told Sun Online today that the Indian Cost Guard vessel that rescued the crew arrived in Cochin yesterday. He said that all the crew members are in good condition, and that he had received information that they will arrive in the Maldives tonight.

Some Indian papers have reported that the vessel suffered an engine problem and drifted for two days before it sank.

“Commander K.M. Arun Kumar, commanding officer of CGS Varuna, which is part of the Navy’s First Training Squadron, said that heavy sea swell, up to three-metres, poor visibility (less than 1 km in rain) and winds of up to 25 knots (50 km) posed challenges to the rescue operation,” reported The Hindu.

The Hindu also reported that the vessel’s Captain Ahmed Shakir had told Indian coastguard that the fuel filled from Port Bin Qasim could have been contaminated, which caused the vessel’s turbocharger to pack up, resulting in engine shutdown.

The 6,500-ton, 36-year-old MV Asian Express was carrying 4,000 tonnes of cement and 2,400 tonnes of sand when it sank with 18 Maldivians and four Indians on-board. The incident took place early morning on Thursday when the vessel was about 115 miles north of Thuraakunu.