Two crew dead, 185 rescued after ship sinks off Malaysia

Two crew members died, one was injured and 184 more were rescued, after the offshore supply ship Dayang Topaz sank in waters off Miri, Malaysia, in the morning of Tuesday.

The Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre received a call at 6.45am from the offshore vessel Sapura Constructor, which had received a distress signal from the Dayang Topaz, about 7.7 nautical miles from Kuala Baram, local media reported.

A total of 187 crew members were onboard at the time of the incident, including 185 Malaysian and two Indonesian, according to latest data by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA).

When the Sapura Constructor was mobilized to the scene, it found 62 crew members still onboard the sinking vessel, while 125 had abandoned ship. The weather was still heavy at the time, with waves up to four metres high.

Those in the water were rescued by numerous vessels who had joined the MMEA in the search and rescue operation.

The ship was prevented from sinking further and the 185 rescued crew members were taken ashore. One injured rescued survivor has been also flown by Petronas helicopter to the Miri Hospital.

While the actual cause of the incident is still under investigation, reports say the Dayang Topaz rammed into Platform Baram B, after its anchor cable to the oil platform probably snapped due to huge waves, MMEA director-general Datuk Mohd Zubil Mat Som was quoted as saying to The Star.

The Malaysian state of Sarawak is currently facing the stormy "landas" season, which is the equivalent of the monsoon season in the east coast of the peninsula.